


Howl at the Moon

by lucidown



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alpha Dean, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe, Knotting, M/M, Mates, Mpreg, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-08
Updated: 2015-06-09
Packaged: 2018-04-03 13:23:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 32,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4102564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lucidown/pseuds/lucidown
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dean Winchester, a recently discharged military man, is dying. In a last ditch effort to go out with a bang, he meets a dark haired, blue eyed man who tells him a story: a story of werewolves.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In the Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> I got some complaints about the chapter layout so I decided to go with only a few longer chapters instead. Hope this is better and hope you like it.

The crowded bar seemed to hum with activity as the students milled about, talking and laughing with each other as they drank the week away. Dean Winchester grinned to himself as he strolled up to the bar, casually leaning against it as the energy of the patrons intoxicated him. 

He scanned quickly, locating the possible entry and exit points quickly out of long practiced habit. He shook himself, rolling his eyes and sighing as he realized that no matter how long he was out of the game, the old habits never seemed to die.

"What can I get for you handsome?"

The southern drawl of the pretty bartender pulled Dean out of his head as he turned to face the redheaded beauty. He quirked his lips up in his signature smirk and leaned his elbows on the bar.

"Beer if you please, gorgeous. And a shot of Jack." He winked at the girl, pleased with himself when her pale cheeks heated with a blush as she snapped the cap off a beer and slid it across to him before pouring his shot and plunking it down on the bar. Dean chuckled and turned away from her as her attention was drawn by three sorority girls who were demanding drinks of their own.

Leaning against the bar and taking a sip of his beer, Dean watched the drunk college kids enjoy their Friday night. At twenty-two, he was technical the same age as these kids, but he always felt older than civilians his own age. They just didn't have the experiences he did, the knowledge of the world that came from years of service.

Dean's emerald green eyes darkened with the now familiar anger he felt as he recalled his reason for being in this college town bar in the first place. He reached up to place his fingers against his neck, feeling the comforting, steady beat of his own heart. For the time being at least, he was alive.

Eight months earlier, an attack on his convoy in Kuwait had left him severely injured. Although the doctors had patched him up as well as they could, the resulting tests in the hospital had revealed an anomaly. Three tours in Afghanistan, fourteen missions and six survived attacks and the thing that was going to kill him was a fucking brain tumour. 

As soon as he had been released from the hospital and honourably discharged from service, he had bought a car and made it his mission to see as much of the country he loved as possible before he died. Palo Alto, California was one of the last stops on his trip. He had no idea what he was going to do once his journey was completed because he sure as hell wasn't the sort to wait for the bloody cancer to take him out.

Dean was so engrossed in his thoughts that he failed to notice the young man sitting in a darkened corner of the bar, watching him, startling blue eyes narrowed in curiosity.

~~~

Castiel leaned his elbows on the grimy table, cocking his head slightly as he watched the stranger leaning against the bar. He had noticed him the moment he entered, his confident demeanour and shocking green eyes drawing his attention immediately. 

He had become even more interested as he watched the man order his own standard beer and Jack while simultaneously wrong footing Chloe, the uppity girl who worked bar on weekends and thought she could get any guy she wanted. This stranger had barely batted an eye at the flirtatious redhead and it amused Cas to no end.

He scratched his nail into the label of his beer, peeling it and flattening it back with his thumb as he considered the man. 

He stood about six feet tall with short dirty blonde hair that was spiked up in a manner that was obviously meant to look effortless and his strong jaw was covered by a day's worth of stubble. He wore jeans and a green collared shirt unbuttoned over a black t-shirt and pushed up to his elbows. His wrists were adorned with leather straps and a single black cord dangled from his neck, a small pendant that Cas couldn't see was hanging from it.

The stranger was handsome and, from the way his emerald eyes sparked, intelligent. Cas pursed his lips, narrowing his electric blue eyes and folding his arms over his chest, leaning further into the shadows to continue watching the interesting man.

~~~

Dean drained his shot, slamming it back onto the bar and signalling for another. He felt a presence at his side and when he turned, found a petite blonde girl with enormous blue eyes grinning at him drunkenly.

"Hi there! I'm Amanda. Can I buy you a drink, sexy?"

Dean raised an eyebrow, holding back an amused smile at the girl's forward attitude. She couldn't be older than eighteen and the way she was dressed would have made her father shudder.

"Sorry sweetheart. Not interested, but thanks." Dean gave the girl a quick smile before turning back to the bar to get another drink.

He heard the girl splutter beside him before she huffed and stalked away. 

He rolled his eyes and was about to signal the bartender for the third time when his arm was grabbed and he was violently twisted around. He blinked into the angry, red face of a drunk college boy. The blonde girl and three other angry looking guys stood behind him cracking their knuckles.

"We hear you don't know how to speak to a lady," the lead guy spat, poking Dean in the chest.

He rolled his eyes, "Look buddy, the lady came onto me and I wasn't interested so I turned her down. No harm done."

The guy snorted, "She wouldn't come onto you, she's my girl. She told us you were hitting on her and grabbed her ass."

"Not my problem if your girl's a liar, man." Dean tossed some bills onto the counter and stepped past the guy towards the door. He flipped up his collar and stepped outside, figuring the liquor store and the pay per view channel at his motel would suffice for the rest of the night.

~~~

Cas watched the scene at the bar carefully, watched as the stranger cast off the angry men before striding from the bar confidently. What the guy didn't see that he did was the four guys watching him, growing angrier, before nodding to each other and following him out. 

Cas saw the flash of metal as the final guy pulled a knife from his boot as the door swung closed behind him. It took only a second of consideration before he slapped some bills onto the table, got up and strode across the bar.

He slipped out into the brisk parking lot, and a heavy wind howled. He cast a glance around. He hadn't been more than a a minute behind the guys so they couldn't have gone far. Listened carefully, his extra-sensitive hearing picked up the sound of scuffling from the alleyway next door. He moved quickly, the wind buffeting him, towards the noise. He burst into the alleyway and stopped in his tracks.

Three of the drunken idiots lay unconscious on the pavement and the stranger was facing off against the last of them, the one with the knife. Before the idiot could move, the stranger had crossed the distance and made to knock the knife out of the man's hand. He overstepped, something in his leg hitching and the drunk man took advantage, leaning forward and slipping the knife into the soft muscle of the stranger's stomach.

The stranger grunted, blinking down at the knife handle protruding from his side, before he lunged at the man and punched him hard in the gut. The drunk was knocked him off his feet and his head cracked on the pavement. Cas watched, transfixed, as the stranger turned, made eye contact with him, and collapsed to his knees.

He ran toward him, catching him as he dropped sideways towards the pavement. The man's knuckles were bloody, his eye was already swelling and he had a knife sticking out of his side, but his breathing and his pulse was surprisingly steady. Cas pulled out his cell phone to call 911 but the man knocked it out of his hand.

"No hospital. 'M dying anyway. Better this way isn't it," the man managed a harsh laugh and tried to grin up at him.

His eyes clouded with pain and Cas chewed on his lip, his mind made up suddenly as he watched the man's gaze un-focus as he slipped into unconsciousness. 

He tugged the man's arm around his shoulders and slipped him into his arms. He lifted him easily, his unnatural strength allowing him to support the man's six foot frame as easily as if he had been carrying a child. 

Cas ran to his car, slipping the unconscious stranger into the backseat and throwing himself behind the wheel.

He gunned it back to his motel, breaking speed limits until he screeched into the parking space in front of the crumby room. Unlocking the door, he pulled the man as gently as he could from the car, draping him in his arms as he had before, before stepping quickly to the door of the room. After an uncoordinated fumble with the door, he pushed through with the stranger and set him down on the bed, careful not to jostle the knife too badly. 

The man groaned when he set him down, his eyes blinking open and flashing with pain. Cas knelt beside the bed and squinted at him.

"You seem intent on dying and I can't let you do that alone. If you really don't want a hospital, I won't force it, but I would like to stitch you up if you'll allow me to. If not, I can make you comfortable. Do you have a name?"

The man frowned, eyes betraying distrust as he wrestled with himself.

"Dean. My name's Dean."

Cas smiled, happy at least that he had a name for the man who he might be watching die.  
"Castiel. You can call me Cas, Dean. Now are you sure I can't stitch you up?"

Dean shook his head, leaning back against the pillows to stare up at the ceiling and Cas sighed, standing up. He walked to the bathroom and filled a plastic cup with water from the tap. Behind him, he heard a yelp and a groan that made him spin around, dropping the cup on the floor. Dean was doubled over, blood pouring from the wound in his side, the perpetrating knife lay on the ground.

"Idiot! Why did you pull that out!?" He cursed under his breath and grabbed towels to press against the increasing flow of blood.

"What's the point in waiting it out? I'm dying and I don't feel like drawing it out any longer than it needs to be," Dean panted, his face a mask of pain but Cas saw no fear in his wide green eyes. He pressed his lips together and nodded, draping the towels lightly across Dean's stomach as he sat down gently on the edge of the bed.

~~~

Dean smiled at his handsome saviour whom he was pretty sure he was hallucinating. Did brain cancer cause hallucinations? Probably. It wasn't like he had paid any attention to the doctor's extensive list of symptoms he had rattled off. Dean didn't want to die but he figured going out defending himself against a bunch of punks was better than slowly wasting away to a husk due to the cancer. He smiled at the man and grabbed his hand as he felt the world slipping away from him into blackness.

~~~

Cas gasped when Dean grabbed his hand as his eyes slid closed. A burning pain was attacking him, spreading from the black brand on his wrist. He bit his lip to keep from yelping as the pain increased but his eyes grew wider as he watched his Mark begin to glow bright blue. The light spread through his hand, flowing up towards Dean's now limp fingers, still clasped in his own. The light seemed to waver for a moment before flooding into Dean's fingers, spreading up his hand to his wrist where it glowed so brilliantly that Cas had to shield his eyes. As the light faded, he squinting down at the unconscious young man and pulled his hand away, jumping up from the bed and taking a step back.

Dean's wrist was now emblazoned with the Mark that Cas had traced on tabletops and sketched on napkins since he was sixteen years old. The Mark of the Alpha was now imprinted on Dean's skin.

Rubbing his fingers unconsciously over his own Mark, his mind raced. Cas blinked at the man laying on his bed as he tried to sort out the numerous questions now flooding his brain. He stepped cautiously towards Dean, he had to be sure.

Lifting the blood soaked towels from his side, he sucked in a breathe and closed his eyes, swaying slightly on his feet. The deep gash in Dean's stomach was gone, healed over completely with no evidence of it ever having been there. He sat down heavily on the floor and gazed at the black Mark on Dean's wrist. He groaned and put his head in his hands. He was going to have so much to explain to this man when he woke up.

~~~

Warmth. That was interesting. Before it had been getting colder and colder by the minute and now there was warmth. Dean sighed happily and stretched his arms over his head. His fingers brushed something hard and he frowned, curious as to what this could be. He opened his eyes, blinking as his eyes adjusted to the dark room he was laying in.

Where was he? How did he get here? He frowned and sat up, glancing quickly around the room until his gaze rested on a pile of blood soaked towels sitting by the bathroom.

Fuck. He remembered.

He remembered going to the bar to blast his brain cells and see if he could kill cancer with alcohol. He remembered the drunk frat guys and the fight. Then pain. Only pain. No...there was more. He remembered a handsome stranger with big blue eyes and dark brown hair. He had told him to let him die and he had agreed.

So why was he alive? And why wasn't he in pain? He looked down at himself. He was still dressed in his jeans but his t shirt and over shirt were missing. His skin was unblemished, unmarked and most certainly not sporting a fresh stab wound. He touched the spot on his side that he remembered being ripped open and had a flash memory of pain.

He heard footsteps outside and he stood up quickly, fishing in his pocket for his knife which he flipped open and held out defensively. A moment later, the door opened and the young man from his hallucination appeared, humming to himself and carrying two take out cups and a bag.

He froze when he spotted him, standing in the middle of the room, half naked and wielding a knife. The man was maybe a few years younger than Dean and at least a few inches shorter. He had chiseled features, lean limbs and short dark hair that looked like he had just run a hand through it. He wore a black button up shirt, ripped jeans and a pair of Converse high-tops. 

The man smirked at Dean and rolled his eyes, dropping his items on the small table and shutting the door before he flipped on the light.

"If I was going to hurt you I would have done it while you were asleep. Or better yet, I just wouldn't have brought you back here in the first place," the guy stated, flopping into one of the chairs and taking a long sip from one of the cups.

"Who are you? What am I doing here? Why aren't I dead?" Dean took a step backwards and his legs hit the bed. The man rolled his eyes again, leaning back casually in his chair.

"I'm Castiel. Cas. We met last night when I found you bleeding to death in an alley," he picked at his straw and drummed blunt nails against the tabletop. "What you are doing here is I brought you back here to try to help you since you refused to go to the hospital. You wouldn't let me stitch you up either so I was going to let you die in peace but then..." He gulped and looked nervous for the first time since he had entered.

Dean frowned, taking a step towards the man, "but then what?"

"Long story. One that is probably best told when we have had some food and you don't have a knife pulled on me," Cas held up the second cup and the bag of takeout, indicating the other chair with a nod.

Dean hesitated, frowning at the man. Something about this guy was making him feel at ease and his gut was telling him to trust him, that he wouldn't hurt him. Even if he did, he was still a dead man in a few months regardless of whatever divine intervention had occurred last night. He stepped cautiously towards the guy and sat, staring at the proffered cup in front of him. What if he had poisoned it or something? He really didn't feel like being roofied today.

Cas quirked up an eyebrow at him, seemingly reading his mind as he reached over and took a very dramatic sip of his drink before setting it back down in front of him. He snorted but took the cup as his stomach broke the silence by growling loudly.

Cas laughed and grabbed the bag, spreading out the contents half and half between the two of them. Dean, still very confused but temporarily satisfied that Cas wasn't going to poison him, tore into the food, feeling hungrier than he had been in his life.

~~~

Cas watched Dean tear into his sandwich and remembered how his appetite had increased dramatically after his Mark had appeared.

At sixteen, he had been reluctant to go on a camping trip with his parents but they had insisted. After listening to his mother and father sing terrible renditions of campfire songs for two hours, he had retired to his tent, shoving his headphones into his ears to block them out. Hours later, he woke up to a bloodcurdling scream, and, scrambling out of his sleeping bag and ripping out of his tent, he caught sight of an enormous shadow vanishing into the trees. His pulse pounding in his ears, too much saliva in his mouth, he had crept tentatively toward his parents' tent. The stench of iron was heavy in the air as he pulled aside the torn tent flap. His parents lay, mutilated and bloody, inside the tent, wrapped around each other in death. Cas's vision went white, his heart exploded in his chest and he felt his muscles burn and skin tear away. Terrified, out of his mind with grief, he took off running into the woods, desperately trying to get away from the rank smell of his parents' blood.

"Cas?"

Cas was snapped out of his memory at Dean's question, "Sorry, what?"

Dean raised an eyebrow at him and gestured at his untouched sandwich, "Are you going to eat that?"

He shook his head, pushing his food across the table where it was promptly devoured by Dean. He licked his fingers and sat back in his chair, seemingly more at ease with him now.

"So," he said, crumpling up the sandwich wrapper, "can we get to that long story now? I'm curious as to how I woke up with no evidence of the life-threatening stab wound that I distinctly remember."

Cas pressed his lips together, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth as he considered where to start. "Best to start at the beginning I guess," he began, watching Dean carefully as he spoke.

"My name is Castiel Novak. When I was sixteen, my parents were killed while we were on a camping trip. They weren't my real parents, but they adopted me when I was six months old and they were the best parents I could have gotten." 

Cas watched as Dean's eyebrows twitched at that and told himself to wait. "I didn't get a good look at the thing that did it but it was huge and judging by the marks, had big claws. When I saw my parents' bodies, I had an...interesting reaction. It felt like my skin was burning and tearing and it felt like every part of my body was on fire all at once. The campsite stunk of blood so I ran, trying to get away from it. I must have run for hours and when I finally collapsed, I passed out. I woke up the next morning naked in the woods, and I had this."

Cas pulled his shirt sleeve back to show the Mark to Dean. "This is the Mark of the Omega. It looks like a tattoo but I promise it just appeared on my wrist that morning after my parents died. It Marks me as the Omega because that is what I am."

Dean was frowning, clearly confused by this strange explanation. Cas smiled sadly at him and looked down at his hands, which were folded on the table. He followed his line of sight to his hands and caught his breathe. Cas watched as Dean caught sight of the black Mark on his left wrist and saw his eyes widen in fear and confusion.

"What is that?! Where did it come from?"

Cas shrugged and pulled his sleeve back over his Mark. "I don't know where they come from Dean, but what I do know is what they mean. Unfortunately, I think this is something that needs to be seen, not heard."

He pushed his chair back and walked to the door, grabbing the handle and turning to Dean.

"Please come with me. I promise no harm will come to you and I will explain everything if you do." He pushed the door open, walking out into the night without looking back. He heard Dean follow and he led him behind the motel to the forest which lined the highway. Only when they were both concealed by the trees did he turn back around.

Dean was watching him worriedly and his eyes widened when he started to strip off his clothes and pile them next to him.

"Now, I have to tell you that I absolutely will not hurt you. This is going to freak you out but I promise you will not come to any harm," Cas explained as he kicked off his shoes.

Dean's expression with a mixture of curiosity and embarrassment as he pulled off his boxers, throwing them on top of his other clothes.

Cas took a deep breath and closed his eyes, letting the now familiar heat spread from his Mark into the rest of his body. He felt the tingling and burning and finally a yelp of surprise from Dean.

He opened his eyes, suddenly at a much lower vantage point, and stared at Dean, who had backed up and pressed himself firmly against a tree trunk. He shook himself and lowered himself to the ground, dropping his furry head to the ground while maintaining eye contact with Dean.

The man's eyes were blown wide with fear as he was suddenly confronted with a full grown wolf. Cas whined a little and rolled onto his back, displaying his belly in a complete act of submission he would do for no one except the man standing in front of him.

~~~

Dean blinked at the light grey wolf now laying on the ground where Cas had been standing a moment before. His brain was frantically grappling with his natural urge to run away from the danger and a new, interesting feeling that he couldn't quite figure out.

When the wolf rolled itself over and displayed its belly to him, Dean felt something inside him snap and he peeled himself away from the tree, somehow understanding and accepting this gesture as a complete show of submission and trust. He instinctively knew that this animal was not going to hurt him, that he was a friend.

He knelt carefully in the dirt and extended his hand to the wolf, who was watching him with bright hazel eyes. The wolf seemed to smile at him as he flipped himself over and crawled, belly still pressed to the ground, towards him.

His furry muzzle connected with Dean's outstretched hand and a pulse of blue light shot from the Mark on his wrist. His eyes widened as the light spread up his arm and travelled over his chest. When it reached his heart, he felt an unbelievable heat explode from his chest, burning through his body as he felt his flesh tear away.

Panting, he lay on the ground and opened his eyes. Worried blue orbs stared down at him. Dean blinked, pulling himself to his feet as the wolf did the same. 

Odd. He was now much lower to the ground than he had been and he felt...different. He glanced down at his wrist to see if the Mark was still glowing and yelped.

He was now standing on four furry paws and when he twisted his neck, found that his entire body had morphed into a lupine form. The other wolf, Cas, kept staring at him. As a wolf, Dean stood quite a lot taller than him, opposite of how they stood as humans, and Dean was also much bigger.

Cas chuffed, cocking his head at Dean and he seemed to smile again. He rolled back into the submissive position he had adopted earlier and Dean again felt something inside of him slide into place.

This wolf was not just a friend, he was his. He was part of his pack and it was his duty to protect him. Dean growled low in his throat and nudged Cas gently, encouraging him to roll back over. 

Cas stood, nuzzling him back while he pushed a shred of what used to be his jeans off his back with a paw before took a step back and shifted back into human form, gathering his clothes quickly and stepping into them.

"I swear I didn't know that you were going to shift as well. If I had, I would have had you strip," Cas smiled sheepishly at Dean as he pulled his arms into his shirt. "Hold on, be right back." With that, he scampered out of sight towards the motel and Dean cocked his head, sitting down in the dirt and looking down at his paws.

A moment later, Cas reappeared, carrying a threadbare pair of sweatpants. He smiled apologetically at him and sat down in the dirt.

"Ok, to shift back...you just have to focus on your Mark and remember the burn you felt when you shifted. Try."

Dean closed his eyes, concentrating on the burning he had felt. Almost instantly, he felt his body start to morph around him. A second later, he was crouched, naked and blinking, in the dirt staring at Cas, who was smiling brightly at him. He grinned self-consciously and took the proffered sweatpants, pulling them on quickly. Cas stood and led the way back to the motel, collapsing back into his chair as Dean closed the door behind himself.

"So, care to explain what the fuck just happened?" Dean asked carefully, sitting himself down at the table.

~~~

"After my first shift, I figured out pretty quickly what was going on. The shock of my parents' death kept hitting me like a bullet and every time I remembered, I shifted. I spent weeks in the forest, living wild and trying to get a handle on my new abilities. Once I felt I could control it, I stole some clothes and money and started trying to hunt down information about what had happened to me. I managed to break into the adoption agency that handled my case and found my file but it was not helpful. No information on my birth parents except for a phone number which turned out to be for a dry cleaning service in Salem, Oregon. It was the only lead I had so I hitched a ride to Salem and found the business. The man running it nearly had a heart attack when I walked in, sputtering and staring at me like I was a ghost. His name was Martin and he told me he was my grandfather. Apparently I look just like my dad."

Here, Cas paused, looking down at his clasped hands as his breath hitched. Dean reached out and placed his hands over the other man's, squeezing gently. Cas looked up and smiled gratefully, taking a deep breath before continuing.

"So Martin explained a lot to me. When my mother was six months pregnant, a woman in the market laid hands on her belly and told her a story. The woman was a psychic and the story was of the legendary werewolves; powerful creatures who ruled huge numbers before hunters took them out, one by one, until there were none left. None left, save one."

"Now, with wolves, there are three types, Omegas, Betas, and Alphas. Alphas and Omegas can procreate with each other only, passing the gene genetically, but Betas are capable of passing on the wolf gene through a bite. The last wolf, an Omega, knew that she could not create any more wolves alone and she despaired that she would be the end of her race. She resolved to go wild, living as a wolf and letting her line die with her."

"As she howled her grief, a woman appeared out of the trees and approached her. The woman spoke to the wolf, telling her that the potential for more wolves was locked in her genes, ready to spring forth years later in her descendants. The woman laid hands on the wolf, staring into her eyes, and told her that one day, three female descendants would carry children who would restart the great line of wolves. The wolf took comfort in this, and, suppressing her wild side, she started to play human and took a human mate, living long and healthy with him and having many children, none of whom displayed the traits. As she died, she passed on the the strange woman's promise to her youngest daughter and told her to never let it be forgotten. That daughter was my great-great grandmother and she kept her promise, passing the story down so that it wouldn't be lost."

"When the psychic woman in the market laid hands on my mother's belly, she told my mother to ask her father about the wolves and the prophecy because she was the one. My grandfather, Martin, explained to her and my father about the legend and he took it very seriously. He told my parents that they must take measures to protect themselves and their unborn child. Hunters were still in the world, and some were knowledgeable of the prophecy and always on the lookout for the children it spoke of. My father, Elliot, thought the entire thing was ridiculous and was reluctant to do anything but Mother convinced him, as she felt the truth in her father's words and feared for her child. They went into hiding, off the grid and my mother gave birth three months later to a baby boy: me."

"I was healthy and seemingly human. Father took this as a sign that the entire thing was ridiculous and picked a fight with Mother. He stormed out and in his anger, made a mistake and accidentally led a team of hunters back to their home. They killed Mother as she tried to defend me but Father took them all out before they could get to me. He was in the Army and wasn't easy to kill but they injured him enough that he died of blood loss before the police could get there. Martin explained to me that he figured by not coming forward and claiming me as his grandson, he was providing me with safety in anonymity. He promised me that it broke his heart to see me sent into the system but he was certain that I would be better off.

Cas looked carefully at Dean, seeing the far away look his eyes had adopted, and finished his part of the story.

"I was adopted by Louise and Mitchell Novak. They were wonderful parents and they didn't deserve the fate that they were dealt. Martin explained more about the prophecy and told me all he knew about the legend of the wolves. He told me about the three breeds and told me that the Mark on my wrist, the symbol of the Omega, meant that I was capable of bearing children for my Alpha, my mate. Omegas are also natural caretakers and are meant to see to the health and wellbeing of the pack. Alphas are the leaders of the pack, defenders, and have the ability to command and give orders when necessary, and Betas are the midline between the two poles of Alpha and Omega. Betas are also the only ones who are able to pass on the wolf gene to a human through a bite.”

"You, Dean, are the Alpha. When I took your hand last night when you were dying, my Mark recognized you and Marked you as well. The Marking awakened your wolf and healed your body. When you shifted just now, your full status as Alpha was realized and your wolf recognized me as your Omega. That's why you are feeling comforted by touching me."

~~~

Dean looked down at his hands, still wrapped around Cas's clasped fingers. He had been feeling an intense calm spreading through him ever since the contact had been established.

Experimentally, he pulled his hands back and immediately felt a deep sense of dread, fear and anxiety course through him, making him gasp and wince. Cas knelt next to him and took his hands again, his touch easing the intense feelings instantly. He sighed in relief.

"It will get easier and easier to be apart from me as your wolf settles but for now you can hold onto me as much as you need to," Cas stroked his fingers over the back of Dean's hand, making something inside him growl happily.

"So I'm your Alpha."

Cas nodded. "My pack Alpha, yes."

"And we have a Beta out there somewhere?"

Another nod. Dean pulled Cas into a hug, the increased contact making him feel more grounded. He stroked up and down his back before leaning back to tell his story.

"I was adopted as well. I don't know what happened to my birth parents but I was abandoned at a Church when I was a few days old. Sheila, my adopted mother, loved me and treated me great until she died when I was seventeen. I went off the rails until a recruiter from the military found me in a holding cell and told me he could give me a purpose and a role that would make a difference so I joined up. Eight months ago, my convoy was attacked as we were leading some civilians out of Kuwait and I was laid up in the hospital. In one of the scans, they found an inoperable brain tumour and gave me about a year to live."

Dean felt Cas stiffen at his words.

"That's another thing I should mention. According to Martin, the Alpha, Beta and Omega can't be separated for too long or we will die. He told me that I had only until I was twenty three to find my Alpha and Beta or all three of us would die. I would wager that that brain tumour of yours is a time bomb and I would reckon something similar would kill me."

Dean laughed humourlessly, "Yea I figured I only had about a year left. But what now? Does the countdown stop now that we found each other?"

Cas shook his head. "Unfortunately you and I are only two parts of a three piece puzzle. We need to find our Beta or all three of us are going to die."

~~~

A while later, Dean paced anxiously back and forth, treading a path in the carpet as he waited for Cas to get back. He had insisted on going to Dean's motel to pick up his things alone due to the fact that "we can't have a half naked guy in torn old sweats wandering around" but he really didn't like his Omega wandering around town unprotected.

As soon as the sound of Cas's car had faded, Dean had felt panicked and anxious. He knew it was the separation anxiety but his heart wouldn't calm down and he kept jumping at the smallest noises.

After what felt like hours, he heard the hum of Cas's car returning and recognized the comforting scent of his Omega.

He went to the door, pulling him through and yanking him into a tight hug, inhaling the smell of Cas's hair and nuzzling his nose into the crook of his neck. 

Cas laughed, allowing the display of possession as Dean rubbed his scent into him. When his heart rate settled, he released him, checking him over quickly to make sure he was alright.

"I was gone for fifteen minutes! I'm fine Dean," he chuckled and shook his head, holding out Dean's duffel bag.

After changing into his own clothes, jeans and a fitted black t-shirt, Dean sat forward in his chair, elbows resting on his knees and brow furrowed as he listened intently to Cas explain some things.

"Ok," Cas smirked and rubbed his hands together, "you probably haven't noticed too much of difference yet because it has only been the two of us in isolation but it will hit you like a bus when we go out so I want you prepared. Your senses are all in overdrive: hearing, smell, taste, and sight. In human form we still have these enhancements but they feel much more natural when we shift. You get to used to it though. The biggest adjustment you have to make is to the strength. I'm a lot faster than I look," he grinned at Dean, "could probably beat you nine times out of ten in a race, but as the Alpha, you are naturally extremely strong."

Dean cocked an eyebrow at him, casting a glance up Cas's lean frame, taking in his slim legs and lean figure. He couldn't imagine this guy being anywhere near as fast as he was. Cas rolled his eyes and continued.

"Speed is hard to adjust to but it's only an issue when you're really running. What I'm more concerned about for the time being is your strength, especially since you're an Alpha."

"So how are we going to get me used to this stuff? I don't want to hurt anyone. You seem to have it under control but you lived in the woods for months and you have a seven year head start on me."

"Don't worry," Cas winked at him. "I've got some ideas and we're going back to the woods tonight to practice."

~~~

As night fell heavily, Cas led Dean back to the edge of forest behind the motel. He chucked the pair of ratty sweatpants at him.

"Put those on. Strong emotions or physical exertion can trigger a shift and I don't want you ripping through any more good clothes."

He crossed his arms as Dean shucked off his shirt and jeans and toed off his heavy black boots. He pulled the old sweats on and followed him as he led him deeper into the darkness of the forest.

Despite the heavy blackness, he found his eyes adjusting rapidly to the lack of light. It was almost as though a light had been turned on just for him and he could see just as well as he could in the light of day. He cast a glance around, surveying the darkened forest. 

He closed his eyes and listened to the symphony of sounds surrounding them. He could hear and smell everything: an owl hooting softly, wind whistling, the people back at the motel chatting quietly in their rooms, Cas breathing lightly next to him, and...a wolf picking lightly through the brush a few hundred feet ahead.

Dean drew in a breath, feeling his heart accelerate at the scent that his body was telling him was a threat. He snarled and felt his Mark burn white hot on his wrist before he exploded out of his skin, shifting mid lunge as he took off in the direction of the smell. 

He was vaguely aware of Cas yelling for him to stop but he ignored him. Cas was Omega, he was Alpha, and he needed to protect him from the danger that was far too near for his liking. He spotted it quickly, lunging and landing on the startled animal as his canines sank into its neck. With a quick jerk and snap, he broke its neck and pulled his jaws away from the dead animal. 

The threat gone, Dean blinked at the carcass, felt the blood pooling in his mouth and dripping from his jaws and he recoiled from his kill. Shifting back, he curled around himself, staring in shock at what he had done.

Cas appeared beside him, placing his hand on his shoulder. "It's normal Dean, don't worry about it. It is a bit jarring the first time but hunting and killing other animals kind of comes with the territory of being an animal."

He stared at him and shook his head. "I'm not worried about it. I found a threat to you and removed it. I'm only a bit shocked at how alright I am with that. Defending you comes as easily as breathing."

Cas nodded, "You're the Alpha. It's in your nature to want to protect and defend your pack and right now, your pack is me. So," he raised an eyebrow at Dean's now totally naked body, "my sweatpants idea was obviously a huge success so I guess you're doing this naked."

Dean shrugged, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand to remove some of the blood. He watched as Cas stood and walked over to a large tree. He reached back, balled up a fist and punched clean through the bark, breaking a large hole through the wood.

He dusted his hands off and turned to Dean, showing him his unblemished knuckles and told him to try.

"I need to get a baseline read on your strength. I have no clue how strong you are and we need to be sure you won't hurt anyone."

Dean walked over, as Cas had, and punched the tree, wincing expectantly and closing his eyes as he waited for the pain to come. It didn't. Instead, a loud creaking and snapping had his eyes snapping open to see the tree teetering precariously, hardly any trunk left.

Laughing, Cas grabbed his hand and pulled him away quickly from the teetering tree. As they jogged away, a loud crash echoed through the quiet woods from behind them.

Dean stopped, looking back where his eyes could make a cloud of dust that had risen around the fallen tree.

"I barely even tried! Holy crap!"

Cas nodded, still chuckling, and explained the importance of handling everything as though it were made of glass, because the normal amount of strength he was used to using to open a door or grip a handle would pull doors off hinges and crush metal.

After more than an hour of strength exercises ranging from jumping into trees, running, digging holes, to hurling boulders around the clearing, Dean was bored. He growled low in his throat and Cas turned and stared at him. He cocked his head and grinned.

"Alright, alright, enough for now. What do you want to do?"

Dean smiled and shifted, leaning down and wagging his tail, tempting the Omega to play with him. Cas chuckled at the sight of the enormous wolf behaving like a puppy, but shrugged and pulled his shirt and shorts off, shifting and staring at Dean with amusement dancing in his blue eyes. He narrowed them and barked once before he took off running in the opposite direction. 

Growling at the challenge, Dean took off after the smaller wolf.

~~~

"You were right, Cas, you are quick," Dean commented as he pulled his jeans back on.

Cas shrugged, "I might be smaller and faster but you have the brute size and strength of an Alpha. Omegas are supposed to be small since we aren't meant to attack or defend."

Dean nodded as he followed the smaller man back up to their motel. "So what are we going to do now? I mean, this is great but we can't just live out of this crappy motel forever, shifting in the woods."

Cas snorted and shook his head. "No. You know, I've been combing the country for the last seven years trying to find you and I've found some good places and met some good people. I figure we should head north and figure out what to do as we go."

Dean flopped down on his bed, swinging his feet up and crossing his arms behind his head. Cas had gone to the front desk earlier and asked for a room change to a double so they could stay in the same room since Dean had practically had an anxiety attack at the thought of going back to his own motel across town. Dean shivered at the thought of being separated by that much distance.

"Do you know anything about our Beta? I mean, other than the fact that they're currently twenty two."

Cas shook his head, "no...I didn't know anything about you either. I just felt for the last few weeks that I should be heading west and I ended up here. I guess the bond was pulling us together."

Dean agreed. "Yea. When I got to town I felt as though something was here. I guessed at first that it was you but it hasn't gone away. Its sort of like when you move too far away from me, I get this itching under my skin that feels like I'm going crazy until I can see, feel or smell you. It's like that only not nearly as intense. I think our Beta might be close by as well."

Cas blinked at him, brow furrowed in thought. "It's probably your protective instincts, you sense a pack member is without protection and your wolf is itching to protect her just as it wants to do for me. We might be able to use that to pin down her location more accurately. If you start feeling more anxious, I'd wager we would be getting further away, but if you start feeling better, I'd guess we would be closer."

They agreed that they would do a search starting early the next morning, after a good night's sleep.

~~~

Dean stared at himself in the bathroom mirror. Cas had gone to bed already and Dean was washing up.

He examined his chest. The muscles he had developed from years of military service were still there but they seemed more toned then they had been before, his skin taut over each dip and curve. He turned and examined his back.

Once riddled with scars from combat, the skin was smooth and unblemished. He touched his shoulder where a rogue bullet had torn clean through two years ago, leaving a star-shaped scar that was no more.

He stretched his once injured right leg and glanced down at it. The attack eight months ago had sent a piece of shrapnel into his thigh, severing some nerves and leaving him with very little control of the limb but now, the leg was like new.

Looking back in the mirror, Dean scrutinized his reflection, staring into his bright green eyes. His eyes, he realized, that now held the same eerie, otherworldly spark that Cas's did.

Dean blew the air out through his mouth and ran a hand through his short blonde hair before letting himself out of the steamy bathroom. Cas was curled in on himself in his queen-sized bed, taking up a ludicrously small corner of the mattress with his big arms wrapped tightly around his pillow.

Dean smiled at the Omega before slipping into his own bed after pulling on a pair of boxers, settling himself down and staring up at the ceiling. 

The anxious ache of separation had returned when he had had to go into the bathroom for his shower but he had assumed it would dissipate when he got back in the same room as Cas. He took a deep breath, trying to calm the irritating itch that buzzed under his skin; he blew it out in exasperation, this wasn't working.

He glanced over at Cas and watched the steady rise and fall of his chest.

In an instant, he was out of bed and slipping under the sheets next to the man. He wrapped his arms around him and pulled him close. He pressed him against his chest and Cas moaned softly in sleep, releasing his pillow and curling himself into Dean's embrace, wrapping his hand around his forearm. 

Dean relaxed as the now familiar comfort of Cas's touch flowed through him, easing the ache immediately. His last conscious thought before he fell asleep was that he hoped that he wouldn’t be angry with him in the morning.

~~~

Early morning found Dean slouched in the driver's seat of his shiny black '67 Impala with black shades covering his eyes as he reclined against the window. He and Cas were parked across from the student dorms at Stanford University and Cas was busy scanning for their Beta.

After over a week of searching, the anxiety in Dean's stomach had finally lessened when they had come within sight of the dorms. He had pulled over to let Cas scrutinize the few students wandering around the campus at this hour in the morning. Just as sleep was pulling him softly down into the depths, Cas poked him in the back of the head.

"Dean! We aren't here to sleep!"

"Well we certainly aren't here to find our Beta because if they're anything like me, they are still in bed, the same place anyone with any sense is right now," Dean pushed himself up and sat back against the leather seats, glowering at his Omega and his early morning perkiness.

At that moment, a tingle shot up the back of Dean's neck and he turned, staring through his sunglasses across the road at the dorm entrance where a petite blonde girl had appeared, jogging in place as she jabbed headphones into her ears. She looked to be in her early twenties and she was thin, her long blonde hair tied back in a ponytail.

Dean felt the familiar calm settle in his stomach as he caught sight of the young girl. He growled happily and made to open the car door when Cas grabbed his arm. He snarled quietly but stopped and turned to him, raising his eyebrows in query.

Cas rolled his eyes. "It's morning, dumbass. We have no idea how this thing is going to work. It only took a slight touch for me to Mark you. With the two of us together we might not even have to touch this girl to Mark her OR make her shift. You weren't awake when I Marked you but it was bright as hell and very obvious. We can't have that in the middle of the day and we most certainly can't have a confused, scared werewolf wandering around the Stanford campus!"

Dean frowned at him but sighed and released his grip on the door handle. "Fine, but I'm not letting her out of my sight."

~~~

"My god am I glad I didn't go to college," Dean muttered to himself, slurping loudly from his coffee as he watched his Beta pull her book bag back onto her shoulder.

Dean had been watching her all day long and had come to the conclusion that the girl led the most boring life possible.

After her run she had gone back to the dorm, coming back out showered and clothed with a backpack slung over one shoulder, and headed to campus. Dean had parked and followed the girl, tracking her through the campus to all her classes and finally to the library at the end of the day, where she had stayed until now.

Dean rolled his eyes and stood up from the corner table he was occupying at the coffee shop across from the library, throwing some bills onto the table as he left. He shouldered his way out of the diner and was pulling out his phone to text Cas that the girl was finally leaving when he was confronted with a pair of angry hazel eyes, the girl he had been following all day staring at him and bristling with rage.

Dean raised his eyebrows at the fiery little girl. At six feet, Dean was an imposing figure but this girl was staring him down like she didn’t realize he had at least eight inches on her.

"Who the fuck are you and why have you been following me all day?"

Dean's wolf growled happily as he heard his pack mate's voice. The urge to rub against the girl and cover her in his scent rose to the surface but he contained himself. The girl already thought he was a stalker, he didn't need her thinking he was insane as well.

He plastered on his most glowing grin. "Sorry sweetheart, I don't know what you're talking about. I've been taking a campus tour today and I've been all over. Just stopped in for a coffee before heading back to my motel room." Dean rattled off the lie he and Cas had cooked up for this situation, pulling the campus map out of his back pocket as evidence and presenting it to the girl.

The girl’s face scrunched up as she considered the story, doubt playing behind her eyes as she thought. She glowered at him a moment longer before she shrugged. "Whatever, guess I'm paranoid. Just don’t let me catch you following me again or I’ll kick your sorry ass." She moved to shoulder her way past Dean, but she tripped over her own feet.

Without thinking, Dean shot out a hand to catch her and grabbed her hand.

White hot pain erupted from his Mark as a bright blue light engulfed his and the girl’s clasped hands. Dean saw her eyes go wide before they rolled back in her head and her small frame crumpled to the ground.

Fuck.

~~~

Cas looked up from his laptop as Dean kicked the door open, a small blonde girl slumped unconscious in his arms with her head on Dean's shoulder.

"What the hell happened? I thought you were just keeping an eye on her! You weren't supposed to..." He stopped as he caught a glimpse of the Mark freshly emblazoned on the girl’s wrist as Dean set her down carefully on one of the beds.

"Dean! I told you not to touch her!"

Dean shrugged, yanking off his jacket and throwing it on a chair. "Not like the she gave me much choice. She practically attacked me."

Cas raised an eyebrow. "She attacked you? She’s like a hundred pounds!"

Dean flushed and ran his hand over the back of his neck. "She surprised me and then tripped and I...I just forgot okay! And it's not like I could just leave her there!" Dean flopped down in a chair and grabbed a bag of pretzels.

Cas pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes at Dean before shaking his head and walking over to the bed. He sat next to the small girl and stroked her tangled blonde hair out of her eyes, caressing her skin gently with his fingertips.

He pulled his hand back suddenly. "Well this is creepy. Two guys in a motel with an unconscious girl?" Dean nodded furiously as he munched nervously on his pretzels. Cas backed off and went to sit at the table with Dean.

“Is that her bag?” He asked, nodding to the girl's book bag that Dean had deposited on the floor.

"Yea, she had it on her. Why?" Dean asked between mouthfuls.

Cas stood up and started rifling through the pockets. "Young girl going to Stanford typically has people who will be looking for her pretty quickly. I need her phone so we can text some people and let them know she’s okay. Bingo." 

He pulled an iPhone out of her bag and pressed the button. Three unread texts, all from Mom, appeared on the screen.

When are you coming over?  
Are you okay?  
Joanna Beth, I'm starting to worry.

Cas sighed and opened the conversation, typing out a quick message to the woman.

Sorry! Got caught up studying. I'm going to crash at a friend’s tonight but I’ll call in the morning. I’m going to head straight to bed. I'm exhausted.

He waited a moment before the triple dots indicated a message in progress.

You had me worried sweetheart! You work yourself too hard. Sleep well. Love you.

Cas smiled at that, glad his Beta had such a caring mother. He turned back to the girl, Joanna, but spoke to Dean.

“Her name’s Joanna. Suits her doesn’t it?”

He jumped as Joanna groaned and shifted, her eyes scrunching closed as she woke slowly.

Dean made to stand but Cas raised a hand, hearing the quiet growl of frustration. Regardless of Dean's natural desire to control and command, it would be less daunting to be confronted with two guys sitting away from her.

Joanna blinked and opened her eyes. Cas saw hazel eyes fill with confusion before she locked onto him and Dean. Fear instantly clouded in them as she came to and failed to recognize her surroundings or her companions. The small girl leapt off the bed, putting it defensively between herself and the two men.

"What the hell is going on here? Where am I?"

Cas held up his hands, trying to reassure the frightened girl. "You passed out in the street while you were talking to my friend so he brought you back here to make sure you were alright. My name's Cas and this is Dean." He indicated the Alpha with a nod over his shoulder. "We're not going to hurt you."

Joanna squinted at him before reaching into her jacket pocket and pulling out a silver flask and a small knife. She unscrewed the top and held it out to him. "Drink. Its water."

Cas shrugged and took the flask, tipping back a suit of the lukewarm liquid. Joanna watched him closely as he did and then nodded to Dean, so Cas handed it back to him. Dean raised an eyebrow at the odd behaviour but followed suit.

Satisfied for the moment, but still holding the small knife in front of her, Joanna reached into her pocket again and pulled out a small pouch. She offered it to Cas and he looked inside, salt. His heart stuttered for a moment as he realized what was going on. Fuck. Their Beta was a hunter! How could this happen? She was administering the standard three round test to make sure that he and Dean were human. Holy water, salt and silver could determine the identity of pretty much any supernatural creature that existed so Hunters used them to determine what they were dealing with.

As werewolves, the holy water and salt were no big deal for him and Dean but from experience, Cas knew that silver could be a bitch. Unlike other creatures allergic to silver, they would be able to touch the metal for a short period with no adverse effects but if it stayed in contact too long or cut into their flesh, it would sizzle and burn like mad. Depending on what Joanna had in mind, this family reunion could go south really fast.

Attempting to calm himself, Cas took a pinch of salt from the pouch and licked it off his fingers, handing it back to Dean while maintaining eye contact with Joanna.

After watching Dean lick the salt, she pulled another small knife from her boot and handed it to Cas, who took it and, hoping for the best, pulled up his sleeve and pressed the flat of the blade against his forearm. 

As soon as the blade made contact, Joanna nodded and cocked her head toward Dean. Cas walked over to Dean and almost laughed at the look of complete bewilderment on his face. He grabbed his arm, pressed the blade to the bare skin and looked back to the girl, who appeared visibly more relaxed now.

"Sorry, but judging by the fact that you knew what to do, you understand the precaution." Joanna crossed her arms over her chest. "Does leave the question of what you want from me unanswered though. If you were demons or shifters, I could understand the motive, but..." She trailed off and furrowed her brow.

Cas sighed and sat down on the floor by Dean, who instinctively moved to press his leg against his side, a small rumble pulsing through him at the contact.

"How long have you been a Hunter?" Cas asked, feeling Dean tense immediately.

Joanna shrugged. "I’m not really. My dad was. After he died my mom taught me all I needed to know to keep myself safe. How about you two?"

Cas shook his head. "We aren't Hunters. We're just very familiar with the dangers in the world. My parents were killed under supernatural circumstances."

"That sucks, my dad was killed by a shifter. My name’s Jo by the way. Joanna Harvelle. So are you brothers?"

"As good as," Dean muttered under his breath and Jo raised an eyebrow.

"No. We’re friends but we have a more complex relationship than that." Cas stretched out his legs in front of him and indicated the bed. "You can sit down if you want."

Jo shook her head. "So, what do you two want with me exactly? Do you need help with a hunt or something?"

Dean scoffed and shook his head, leaning back in his chair without taking his eyes off the petite girl.

"No sweetheart, we don't need a Hunter's help with anything."

His body was wired with tension, practically pulsing. Cas laid a hand on his thigh in an attempt to calm him down, and his eyes harboured a silent plea. Dean huffed and took a deep breath, trying to inhale his Omega's calming scent.

Cas turned back to Jo and started to tell her their story. He started with his adoptive parents' campsite murder (leaving out the shift) and finished when he found his grandfather, Martin. 

"He explained to me how and why my birth parents died and told me the story that led to their deaths." He rattled off the old werewolf legend, telling Jo of his parents' attempt to hide and their murder at the hands of Hunters. "I was sent into the system to try to protect me from the Hunters who seemed to believe I was a monster. I found Dean about a week ago and we've been searching for third bond mate. Both of us had a strong feeling that they were in this town so we have kept any eye out. This morning, we spotted you."

Jo frowned at him, confusion evident in her expression. "Hold on, you think I'm your bond mate?" At Cas's nod, she uncrossed her arms, circled the bed and sat down heavily. "Why do you think I'm the one you've been looking for?"

"Two reasons, first, your eyes. You have the exact same spark that Dean and I have." Jo peered closer at Dean, scrutinizing his eyes as he waggled his eyebrows at her before looking to Cas. She pursed her lips and nodded. "And the second?"

Cas glanced nervously up at Dean. "Second, well...you remember the legend the psychic woman told my mother? Well, it isn't so much a legend as it is family history." He pulled up his sleeve and flipped his wrist, displaying his Omega Mark to Jo.

She raised an eyebrow and looked to Dean, who rolled his eyes before thrusting his wrist out to show her his Mark.

"So you have cool tattoos...what does that have to do with me?"

Cas let his gaze slide from Jo’s face down her shoulder and to her left hand. She followed his line of sight and stood up abruptly as she caught sight of the black Mark on her wrist. "What the fuck! You guys tattooed me? Who the fuck does that?"

Cas stood quickly. "We didn't do that Jo. I promise you. Do you remember what happened right before you passed out?"

Jo threw her hands up. "Uhh, Dean over there convinced me that he wasn't following me, which he clearly was, and then I tripped over my feet like an idiot and he grabbed my hand to break my fall..." She stopped, frowning at her memory. "There was a lot of blue light and then nothing."

Cas nodded. "That was the Marking. Same thing happened the first time I touched Dean, although he was passed out at the time. The legend of the wolves is real and we are the ones in the legend. The ones who are meant to restart the line of werewolves."

~~~

Jo pressed her lips together and burst out laughing, doubling over in mirth as Cas and Dean stared at her. 

Dean stood, fists clenched in anger as the small girl kept laughing. Cas grabbed his arm and shook his head, his eyes dancing with mischief as he turned and walked to the bathroom, closing the door behind himself. 

Dean chuckled, grabbed a beer from the fridge and sat back down. He watched Jo straighten up, wiping the tears of laughter out of her eyes.

"Keep laughing sweetheart cause you won't be in a minute," Dean chuckled and took a swig of beer, kicking his feet up on the table.

Jo only had time to cock her head in confusion before the door opened. Dean saw only a flash of Cas's bare skin before a furry form trotted out, tongue lolling as he planted himself next to Dean facing Jo, who squeaked and tripped over her own feet, landing on the bed with a soft sound. 

Her eyes were as big as dinner plates as she watched Dean reach over casually, scratching the top of Cas's head and swinging his feet off the table. He narrowed his eyes at Jo.

"Still laughing?"

Jo stared at the wolf in amazement. To her credit, Dean noticed that there was no fear in her wide green eyes. He watched as Jo stood and approached the wolf cautiously. 

He anticipated the next move and saw it as if in slow motion. Jo grabbed her silver knife from where it had landed on the bed and lunged at Cas, who whined and shied back. 

Dean had already made his move, launching himself between the small girl and his Omega. He felt his teeth lengthen, the anger encouraging him to shift but he fought it back. He growled at the angry young girl, eyes flashing with rage and he crouched low to the ground, baring his teeth at Jo. The girl may be pack but as she hadn't shifted, and his wolf didn't recognize her as his Beta yet.

"I can't kill you but we heal fucking fast so I have no problem with causing you a hell of a lot of pain if you try to hurt Cas. You may be my Beta but at the moment you pose a threat to my Omega and I'm having a hell of time trying not to rip your throat out."

Dean took a deep breath, pulled back a bit and felt his teeth retract as he calmed himself. He risked a glance at Cas, who was laying calmly with his head on his paws near the table, giving him a wide birth to deal with Jo.

He cocked an eyebrow at the girl before him. "We aren't going to hurt you unless we absolutely need to. We want you to listen and hear us. Believe it or not, we are trying to save your life. You may be a Hunter but we are not a threat to you or anyone else so if you agree to calm the fuck down and give me that knife, we can chat."

Jo glared at him but nodded once, sliding the knife across the floor to Dean, who, took it, straightened up and backed off towards Cas, placing himself between his siblings.

Jo sat down and crossed her legs, glowering but appearing ready to listen.

"The three of us are three parts of a pack. We can't exist for long without each other and we've been apart for too long. Twenty three years is the deadline to find each other and become a pack or all three of us will die. We found you and the Marking let us know for sure that you are who we thought but in order to make you pack, we have to get you to shift."

As he spoke to Jo, Cas wandered out from behind him, skirting around her cautiously as he slipped into the bathroom. A minute later he reappeared, smoothing his shirt down.

"We won't force you to do anything you don't want to. We just want you to hear us out and try to open your mind." Cas carded his hand through his short dark hair.

Jo huffed. "Right cause werewolves are typically oh so accommodating when turning people."

Dean snarled at her. "We aren't turning anyone. We can't even do that. You, sweetheart, are the only one who can actually turn people."

The girl frowned at looked to Cas, who nodded and sat down. 

"Jo, in the trinity, Dean is the Alpha, I'm the Omega and you are the Beta. That means that you don't have the responsibility of protecting or nurturing the pack like Dean and I do but it does saddle you with the responsibility of being able to choose who else joins our pack. We didn't do anything to you Jo. We were all born like this and would have been shifting for years if we hadn't been separated. I know you have been trained your whole life to see the supernatural world as an evil one, and a lot of the time it is, but it doesn't exist just in black and white."

Jo eyed him suspiciously, standing up. Dean growled but Jo raised her hands in surrender. "I'm just going to sit down with him," she pointed to the empty chair across from Cas. As she moved to sit down, Dean circled back and placed himself beside Cas, body strung taut and ready if Jo tried to pull anything.

She settled herself into the chair and stared at Cas, looking like she was thinking hard. 

"You're clearly a werewolf," she said speaking to Cas, "and judging from what his teeth did a moment ago, he is as well. Thing is, the only werewolves I've...met couldn't change entirely into a wolf and certainly couldn't do it at will. Their shift was linked to the lunar cycle and they lost themselves completely to it. Why are you different?"

Cas smiled at Jo’s question and leaned forward slightly. "The so-called 'werewolves' you have hunted in the past were merely mutated versions of shifters. Way back when they probably had some werewolf ancestor but through interbreeding and genetic dilution, they are nothing like us anymore. You are correct that they lose their mind when they shift and almost all of them are driven by the desire to kill. The three of us are different because our ancestors were true wolves. The legend is true and the genes have finally come forth again in the three of us. It's because of that that my parents were killed."

Cas looked down at the table and Dean squeezed his shoulder.

"So you retain your mind when you shift?" Jo asked. When Cas and Dean nodded she sat back and stared at the black mark on her wrist, temporarily satisfied. 

"I'm still not sure you both aren't just trying to lure me into a false sense of security and then kill me. My mother and I have heard talk of creatures try all sorts of crap to try to catch Hunters off guard."

Dean snorted and stood up. "Tell you what Joanna, how about we test that theory? There is a nice patch of woods out back. Bring whatever weapons you want and I swear I won't hurt you unless you try to attack Cas again. You can do whatever you want to me."

Cas spluttered in indignation but Dean held up a hand, silencing him.

"I'm going to shift and you can examine me, poke and prod, cut me, hell, do whatever you want." Cas made a pained noise but a look from Dean made him bite his lip.

Jo was watching the two of them interact carefully before she nodded. She grabbed her knife up off the ground and stuck it in her boot. "Good to go."

Dean stomped to the door, grabbed the doorknob and gave Cas a look that had him grumbling but staying put. He pulled the door open and headed out to the darkened woods where he had first turned last week.

He stopped when he was in deep enough and watched Jo pick her way carefully through the underbrush, a flashlight trained on the ground in front of her. He smiled to himself as he realized that while he could see perfectly, Jo was basically blind in the darkened woods. He pulled off his clothes as Jo approached and by the time the small girl caught him in the beam, he was naked. She stopped short and Dean watched a flush creep up her neck as she spotted him.

Dean focused on his Mark and felt the burn flow through his muscles, tearing and pulling and altering the shape of his body. He shook himself, pulling himself up to his full height and chuffing at the slightly fearful look on Jo’s face as she took in the impressive size of the Alpha werewolf. Dean held his ground as Jo approached, staring carefully at the girl who now seemed to understand just how easily Dean could kill rip her to shreds if he wanted to.

Jo shone the light on Dean's paws, slowly letting it travel up his legs to his torso, taking in the curved, deadly claws and the strong muscles of his legs. As she continued her visual appraisal of him, Dean swished his long tail back and forth, surrounding the small clearing with his scent.

Jo came back around to face him head on. "How does silver affect you guys? Clearly it doesn't hurt to touch it or my knife would have burned you earlier."

Dean eyed her and chuffed, shaking his head.

"Right, guess you can't answer that. Can I test your healing ability?" Dean bobbed his big head once and extended his front leg. Jo pulled out her knife. "Not silver, promise." She placed it in the fur near Dean's paw and pulled, quickly and carefully.

Dean growled quietly as blood instantly began to well and pour down his leg. He lowered his leg and shook it, trying to shake the pain away from his foot. Jo knelt and watched as the wound stopped bleeding, knitting itself back together seamlessly. Dean raised his paw and licked the blood off his fur, watching Jo out of the corner of his eye.

"Amazing." Jo shook her head and stood up. "You can understand me perfectly?" Dean nodded. "How many fingers?" She asked holding up three. Dean rolled his eyes and growled in response.

The girl grinned, "Ok. I believe you, calm down. I get that you brought me back here just to show me exactly how strong and big you are. I get that even if I loaded you full of silver, you could still snap my neck or claw out my guts like it was nothing."

Dean growled, barring his teeth and narrowed his eyes, emphasizing the point.

Raising an eyebrow, Jo asked, "So if I'm like you guys, what would cause me to shift?"

Dean smiled to himself and took a step towards her. When the girl didn't step back, Dean lowered his head slightly and extended his nose towards Jo’s small hand, hanging limp at her side.

Jo raised her hand tentatively before placing it gently on the big wolf's head.

Instantly, a blinding light filled the clearing, emitting from Jo’s Mark and enveloping her completely. Dean felt her hand leave his head as the light started and took a step back, not wanting to be too close to the pissed off new wolf when the shift ended.

The light faded slowly, leaving behind a small white wolf standing in its wake. As a wolf, Jo was much smaller than Dean, smaller even than Cas. Her fur was snow white except for a black strip running down the middle of her face. Her eyes were pressed tightly closed as if she was convinced that if she didn't open them, she wouldn't have to acknowledge what had just happened.

Dean stared at the wolf and felt a piece slide into place inside himself as he recognized his Beta. He approached cautiously and nosed Jo’s cheek gently. 

The unexpected contact made the frightened wolf jump slightly and open her eyes, blinking at Dean. The Alpha stepped even closer, rubbing his cheek against her neck and shoulder, rubbing his scent gently into the Beta wolf. He felt Jo relax next to him, leaning into the attention, and growled happily. 

Dean felt an intense urge spread through him and he opened his mouth, latching onto the scruff of Jo’s neck and biting gently into the soft flesh. She yelped and Dean released her, satisfied.

Once he was certain that Jo had enough of his scent rubbed into her for now, Dean leaned back and shifted. Jo whined at him, licking his cheek, and her big green eyes showed fear. Dean laughed, remembering his own initial fear that he wouldn't be able to shift back.

"Close your eyes Jo. Just focus on your Mark and that hot pain that spread from it."

A moment later, Jo was crouched in front of Dean, looking slightly dazed but exceedingly relaxed. Dean grabbed his jeans and t-shirt from where he'd dropped them and passed them to Jo, who had torn through her own clothes during the shift.

"They going to be huge on you but they're better than nothing." Dean yanked on his boxers. Jo blinked, nodding and looking a bit punch drunk but she pulled on the jeans regardless. Dean grabbed her arm and led her back through the woods towards the motel.

They were greeted at the door by a frazzled looking Cas. "Are you kidding me? I was worried sick about you two! You were gone for ages!" He pulled the two into the room and did a quick appraisal, taking in their odd wardrobes and raising an eyebrow at the still-dazed look Jo had on her face.

"She shifted?" Dean nodded. "How did it go?"

"Good. I recognized her instantly as pack, just like with you, but I felt this uncontrollable need to cover her in my scent." He looked at his hands, "so I did."

Cas sniffed the air around Jo and nodded. "I can tell. What's wrong with her?"

Shrugging, Dean pulled off his boots and sat on the bed. "She took to her wolf as soon as she saw me. Seemed to recognize me right away and she seemed to relax when I touched her. When she shifted back she seemed to lose herself. Maybe she has the same sort of thing I do, maybe she needs you. Needs her Omega."

Cas looked surprised but stepped towards Jo, who was lazily scanning the walls with glazed eyes. He reached down and took one of Jo’s hand in his. Instantly, the girl’s eyes flicked to him so he shrugged, reached out and wrapped his arms around the slight girl, pulling her into a tight hug.

Cas felt Jo jerk back to life and her arms went immediately around him. Squeezing him tightly, she lifted her head and buried her nose in his neck. He ran his hands up and down Jo’s back as she inhaled his scent deeply.

He pulled back after a few moments, ignoring Jo’s protesting whine at the loss of contact. She blinked at him and looked over to Dean, who was grinning happily at his pack, leaning back against the pillows with his hands linked behind his head.

"What happened? How did we get back here?" Jo looked down at herself, raising her eyebrows at the enormous baggy jeans and t-shirt.

"Dunno Jo, you kind of spaced out when you shifted back." Dean sighed and closed his eyes, relaxing against the pillows.

Cas smiled at Jo. "So do you believe us now? At her nod, he pulled her back into his arms, smiling at her happy growl.

~~~

Cas and Dean sat on the bed as Jo paced back and forth in front of them.

"My dad died on a hunt when I was three so I don't remember him. My mom, Ellen, was never a Hunter herself but my dad taught her a whole bunch to make sure she could keep us safe when he was away. Mom and I run a bar and inn on the outskirts of town called the Roadhouse, it's kind of a Hunter way-station where the guys can get info, hot food, and a warm bed. She keeps up to date on all the supernatural crap she can find and funnels it out to whatever Hunters come through the bar."

"I got a lot of scholarships for school but mom still had to take out a huge loan so that I could go to Stanford. Even though she lives close, she insisted that I live in the dorms so that I could get the 'full college experience'."

Jo froze suddenly, her eyes widening. "Oh my god! Mom! She's gotta be freaking right out. I was supposed to go to the bar last night after I finished at the library." She glanced at the clock and winced at the late hour.

"Don't worry Jo, Cas took care of it. He texted her and reassured her as soon as I brought you back here." Dean stretched his arms over his head and yawned. "I think it might be time to hit the hay."

~~~

Jo watched Cas change out of his clothes into sweats while Dean slid under the blankets and flopped onto his stomach. It seemed clear that Cas and Dean shared a bed and she wasn't sure what they wanted her to do.

She stood stalk still for a few moments as Cas settled himself in. He looked over to her, smiling warmly.

"I'm the Omega, Jo, which means by nature I'm meant to take care of you two. Dean needed almost constant contact with me for almost a week after he shifted and he still can't sleep alone." 

Dean grunted from where his face was pressed into his pillow but didn't deny it. Cas continued, "However, since you're the Beta, I think just my scent should be enough to help you relax, so feel free to take the other bed. If you can't relax though, feel free to join us."

He pointed to a duffel bag in the corner of the room where Jo found a shirt and a pair of sweats, which she tugged them on in place of Dean's jeans and slipped under the sheets of the second bed. She settled her head against the pillow and watched her pack for a moment before she closed her eyes and took a deep breath of their scent.

Jo only had time to bask in the complete calm that settled over her before exhaustion took hold and she was lost to the world.

~~~

Cas sighed as he watched his Beta pace angrily around the room. They'd been arguing ever since Dean came back from Jo's dorm room with a duffel bag full of clothes for her. 

"Jo, you can't go back to your life exactly as it was. It just isn't possible with other Hunters knowing who you are. They'll notice things and they'll try to hurt you. Dean and I didn't have any ties to cut to tell you the truth but you do and the faster you cut them, the easier it will be."

Jo glared at him. "I am not going to leave my mom! I'm all she's got! It would break her heart."

Cas frowned and pursed his lips, considering the girl. "You are too new to have any control over your abilities. I've been dealing with this for seven years and I still don't pass as fully human sometimes. It just isn't safe to keep hanging out with Hunters so regularly when you are one of the things they hunt." 

He sighed. "As for your mom, what would you do if you hurt her? What if you got frustrated or angry and shifted? One little bite and she'll be one of us as well. Do you want that?"

Jo blinked in shock. "I wouldn't do that. And I could never hurt my mom!"

Cas shook his head. "You just shifted yesterday Jo. As the Beta, you have the natural urge to pass on the gene to humans. For a while, you will have difficulty keeping that urge in check around regular people. We just don't know how it's going to affect you."

Jo sat down heavily in a chair, dropping her blonde head into her hands and groaning. She sat up and looked to Dean, who emerged from the bathroom in a cloud of steam, a towel wrapped around his waist and rivulets of water running down his toned chest.

"What if you came with me? You're the Alpha and you can control me can't you?"

Dean frowned, clearly unhappy with the idea. "I don't want to have to give you any orders unless its absolutely necessary. I may be Alpha but I'm not planning on imposing my will on you all the freaking time. Not to mention it doesn't work perfectly unless we're in wolf form."

"You don't think preventing me from attacking my mother is a necessary time to control me?! Come on Dean! You can't be serious!" Jo spluttered at him.

"She might be right Dean," Cas looked to him, rolling his lip between his teeth. "We need to at least explain the situation to Ellen since Jo can't just up and disappear. I have no ability to control her wolf mentally but your commands can get her to calm down and resist. You need to go with her Dean."

Dean sighed and carded a hand through his short blonde spikes, but he nodded.

"Fine but you come as well. If you stay in the car, your scent will help calm her even from a distance. Plus, if we need to you to, your touch can pretty much sedate her apparently."

Jo's gaze was flicking back and forth between the two, hope evident in her eyes. When Cas nodded at Jo, she leapt up and pulled him into a crushing hug, smiling her thanks at Dean, who rolled his eyes.

An hour later, Dean pulled the Impala up in front of a run-down looking bar, turning to his Beta as his eyes flashed. 

"Joanna, under no circumstances are you to bite or scratch your mother. You will remain calm and steady and you will adhere to my every command when I give them. Cas, stay here unless I call for you." 

Cas blinked at the strange tone of Dean's voice, watching curiously as Jo shivered, something flickering through her eyes as she nodded.

Dean grinned at the girl, "Let's do this Jo."

~~~

Dean pushed the door shut before he followed Jo up the gravel drive to the bar's entrance. He stood behind the girl, tuned acutely to her scent and heart rate to monitor any changes.

He watched Jo pull out a key and unlock the door, pushing it open and stepping through. He caught her wrist quickly.

"Keep calm, Joanna, calm and relaxed."

He watched her shiver violently as the Order took hold but she nodded, her wolf acknowledging Dean's absolute authority.

Dean nodded and released her, allowing Jo to push through the open door.

Dean took in the darkened empty bar. A long wooden bar sat in the middle, surrounded by turned up barstools. Booths of cracked leather and scarred wooden tables lined the walls and square tables of the same sort were scattered haphazardly around the space.

He kept pace with Jo as she strode across the floor, their footsteps thudding loudly against the worn wood.

"Jo, that you?" A voice called from somewhere in the depths of the bar.

"Yea, Mom, and I brought a friend so don't shoot him." Jo chuckled and grinned at Dean before slipping behind the bar and pouring herself a glass of water from the tap. She grabbed two of the barstools up and flipped them over, dropping them onto the floor with practiced ease. She then jumped gracefully over the bar and dropped herself into one of the chairs, indicated the other with a nod to Dean.

Taking a seat and leaning his elbows on the bar, Dean studied Jo carefully. She seemed calm, relaxed, and he huffed, pleased that his Order seemed to have taken hold of the girl.

He heard a shuffling and looked up as a hard looking woman with thick brown hair and steely blue eyes like Jo's emerged from another room, wiping her hands on a rag. She was a slim but curvy woman of average height and she had the look that said she had met some nasty things but had kicked their asses and sent them running scared. The woman was assessing him carefully as she approached.

"If you knocked up my daughter, boy, I will kick your ass into next week."

Dean felt a grin spread over his face, he liked this woman immediately.

"Mom!" Jo spluttered, looking stricken at her mother's insinuation, blushing bright red.

Dean's grin widened and he stood, extending a hand to Jo's mother. "Dean Winchester, nice to meet you, Ma'am. And I most certainly did not knock up your daughter. You don't have to worry about that with me."

The woman continued to appraise him but took his hand, "Ellen Harvelle. So what exactly do I have to worry about with you, Dean?"

"Long story, Ma'am. One you should probably hear from Jo."

Ellen looked curiously to her daughter as she sat down at one of the tables. Jo looked nervous so Dean put a comforting hand on her shoulder and she launched into the story. 

She told her mother about meeting Cas and Dean, carefully leaving out the part where she was unconscious with two strange men in a motel, outlining the multiple strange occurrences of the past twelve hours. She told her of the wolf legend, having Dean show Ellen his Mark and explaining the role of the Alpha and Omega in the hierarchy of wolves.

Finally, she pulled up her sleeve and showed her mother her wrist. Ellen sucked in a breath as she saw the black Mark on her daughter, eyes locking with Jo's as she searched for an explanation.

"The legend is real, Mom. Dean is the Alpha, Cas is the Omega and I, I'm the Beta." She finished, eyes pleading with her mother for understanding and acceptance.

Ellen stood and wrapped her arms around her daughter, squeezing her tight to her in a hug. Dean raised his eyebrows at the woman as she released his packmate.

"You believe us? Just like that? I mean, it's really out there and it took Cas shifting in front of her for Jo to believe that we weren't completely insane."

Ellen brushed a lock of hair of her daughter's forehead, smiling fondly at her. "In twenty three years, Joanna has never lied to me. I can't imagine why she would start now with such an elaborate story." Jo smiled and hugged her mother again before they both sat back down at the table.

"Trouble is, Jo's not human and now that she's shifted, she won't be able to control herself. The only reason she's so calm right now, around you, is because I've used my Alpha control to force her to stay calm. When it's just you, on your own and under my control, Jo is fine, but when this bar is packed full of Hunters who are on the lookout for signs of the supernatural, she wouldn't be able to pass as human. She isn't safe here anymore."

Ellen frowned. "You want to take her away from me."

Dean shook his head, "No, we don't want to take her away but she's my Beta and I need to protect her. Cas has a plan but he can probably explain it better than I can. Cas! Get in here, Angel." He knew that Cas's keen hearing meant he had been listening to the entire conversation and he would hear his call.

A moment later, the brunette poked his head through the door, grinning sheepishly at the trio inside. He walked towards Ellen and stuck out a hand. "Ellen? I'm Castiel, nice to meet you."

Ellen looked a bit taken aback but she shook Cas's hand and gestured to the empty chair at the table. "So what's this plan? I don't like the idea of Jo leaving school."

Cas shook his head. "No, we don't want her to sacrifice her education but the fact remains that she can't be here for a while, at least until she has control over her urges and abilities. I'm thinking that Dean and I take her up north with us. The three of us can learn together and figure this all out. At the very least, we need to teach Jo to control her instincts to bite people since her bite will pass on the wolf gene. I figure that while we're away, she can continue classes online so that she doesn't fall behind. It seems harsh but I don't think we would need to keep her away from any longer than a year."

Ellen frowned but nodded. "I don't like it but if that's what we need to do to keep her safe, then that's what needs to be done." She looked between Cas and Dean, "You two will keep her safe?"

"I can look after myself Mom." Jo rolled her eyes but Ellen still looked to the boys, wanted confirmation. Dean levelled his gaze at her.

"We would never let anything happen to your daughter. She's part of our pack. She's as safe as she can possibly be with us."

Cas and Dean led Ellen and Jo back outside to the Impala, before stepped aside to give the women a moment alone.

Ellen pulled her daughter into her arms, burying her face into her long blonde hair. She pulled back slightly and cupped her face, "I love you so much baby girl. Stay safe and call me alright?" She looked over at Cas and Dean, "and if so much as a hair on her head is hurt, you two will get the ass kicking of a lifetime."

They laughed and stepped into the car, shaking their heads at the fiery woman who was so much like Jo. They watched as Jo kissed her mom on the cheek and slid into the backseat. As they drove away, Jo stared out the rear window as her mom shrank smaller and smaller into the distance.

Dean watched Jo carefully in the rearview mirror. Her eyes were clouded over with sadness but she had a determined set to her jaw that Dean recognized. The girl was definitely pack, strong and fierce. 

He looked over at Cas, who was smiling contentedly to himself and humming under his breath. Dean pushed a tape into the deck and started drumming his fingers along with the beat of AC/DC, eyes trained on the stretch of road in front of him.


	2. Pack Life

~~~ Eight months later ~~~

Dean looked over at Cas, the Omega barely visible in the darkness even with his enhanced senses. "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

Cas nodded, "Yeah, I think so."

Dean turned to the frightened and battered couple they had come to rescue. "All right, listen to me. Stay with Cas. He's gonna get you out of here." They just stared at him. "What are you gonna do?"

Dean winked and started walking back down the tunnel, yelling. "Chow time, you freaky bastard! Yeah, that's right, bring it on, baby, I taste good."

Cas grinned at Dean's attitude, and, knowing he could take care of himself, turned to head in the opposite direction, holding the flare gun ready to shoot, eyes alert for movement.

Suddenly something growled next to him.

He froze and turned slowly, suddenly confronted by the wendigo standing directly beside him baring its ugly teeth. "GO!" He shouted to the couple as he shot at the creature, missing by a wide margin before running after the couple.

They ran to the end of the tunnel, trapped by a sudden dead end and the wendigo was still growling right behind them. Cas turned and faced the thing, placing himself between the couple and the monster. It crept up slowly, taking its time, until Cas spotted his Alpha over its shoulder.

"Hey" Dean yelled, shooting it in the stomach with the flare gun when it turned to him. It went up instantly in flames and he looked to his Omega.

"Not bad, huh?"

Cas just grinned.

~~~

They got back from the hunt late the next day, finding Jo sound asleep on the couch with the television still blaring. Cas picked her up and carried her to her bedroom, tucking her carefully into the bed before he returned to the living room to find Dean studying the contents of the fridge.

Returning, he flopped onto the couch and watched the blonde pull a leftover pie out. Looking at it with love in his eyes, he didn't even bother to heat it up before tucking in. He moaned happily and Cas laughed.

"Dude, I think you like pie more than you like me and Jo."

"It's entirely possible, Angel. Although Jo might have a slight edge on the pie." He ducked to avoid the shoe that Cas lobbed at him, chuckling as he surveyed the cabin.

Eight months ago, after leaving Jo's mom, Cas had directed them north, insisting the more woods they could find, the better.

After a month of driving through small towns, sleeping in crappy motels and living out of the Impala, they had come across an ad for a hunting cabin for rent. Well stocked with fake credit cards and cash from hustling pool (a neat trick of Dean's that he had picked up in the army), they had rented the cabin for an undetermined amount of time. The rent was stupidly cheap and the owner had seemed so excited to have a renter that he hadn't even asked them any questions.

The cabin was nice, with two bedrooms and a bathroom as well as a kitchen and living room, all furnished and cozy with a backwoods sort of charm. 

Dean munched on his pie, watching as Cas rolled his shoulder where the wendigo had slammed him into the wall. They had found that while flesh injuries healed almost instantly, dislocations or internal issues took a bit longer to sort themselves out. Cas's dislocated shoulder was almost healed a day after the injury but Dean could tell that it was still bugging him.

Almost as soon as they got on the road with her, Jo had begun to teach her pack mates about everything and anything supernatural that she knew. 

Cas and Dean had gotten familiar with various monsters, how to kill them, what signs to look out for, and much more. About three months in, Cas had found evidence of a local haunting and wanted to check it out. 

The three of them had easily taken care of the salt and burn but when Ellen had found out that Jo had gone on a hunt, she had been so angry that she has nearly driven up and handed the boy's asses to them in person.

Once they had had a taste for it, neither Cas nor Dean could stand by and watch people get hurt so they had worked out a system. She wasn't happy about it and it had taken convincing but Jo had agreed to stay home and relay information and hunts to her pack while they went out and took care of the messy end of things.

Dean liked being back in the action, saving people and feeling like he was doing good in the world again. He had missed feeling useful ever since his discharge from the military. Cas, with his big heart, might not like the action as much as Dean, but he loved saving people and making a difference.

Dean munched on his pie and considered how far the three of them had come in such a short period of time.

Over the past eight months, all three of them had gained immense control over their wilder sides. Dean and Jo were now both able to prevent themselves from shifting or even reacting in ways that might hint at their other nature and Cas had taught them both to hunt and track animals in the woods using their heightened senses and abilities to guide them.

Cas had also helped Jo get adjusted to being around people and not biting them. It had been hard for her at first and she had needed Dean to accompany her on every excursion into town so that he could Order her under control. Eventually, however, she informed them that while she still felt the tug to pass on the gene, it wasn't at the forefront of her mind every time she saw a person.

Dean knew that while Jo loved them, she was anxious to get back to her mom and her schooling. Online classes just didn't provide the social interaction she craved and she missed her mom a lot.

He knew that she was going to bring up going home any day now and he had been steeling himself for the change in their comfortable routine.

Cas glanced at him over the back of the sofa, smelling a change in his scent and walked over to him. "You ok Dean?"

He shrugged, "I just don't want Jo to leave."

Cas sighed and patted his hand reassuringly.

"She has to go home sometime. And you know she's ready."

~~~

The Roadhouse looked just as Dean remembered it from almost a year ago except this time, the parking lot was packed with various cars, all of which he knew belonged to Hunters.

He felt his pulse quicken at the thought of his pack being surrounded by people who would kill them without a thought but he quelled the anxiety quickly, calming his wolf's protective instincts. They could take care of themselves and all three of them were more than capable of passing as human in a crowded bar.

Dean pulled the Impala into the lot and killed the engine. He watched Jo bounce up and down in the backseat, literally vibrating with excitement at the thought of seeing her mom after eight months and his face broke into a grin. This was going to be fun.

~~~

Ellen's evening had been spent pouring beer after beer, barring a brief interval that had been spent once again giving her bar back Ash a firm lecture about smoking pot in her bar, and she was just starting to think that she might have gotten off lucky when the door swung open.

For a moment, Ellen honestly didn’t notice what had happened. The tattered old jukebox was churning out Bon Jovi’s Dead or Alive, and she was happily humming along to herself as she wiped down the sticky surface of the top. Distantly, she recognized the sound of the door swinging open and the sudden lull in conversation; it was the same every time someone new turned up. They’d step inside, everyone would make a quick and paranoid assessment of one another, and then everyone would start talking again as if nothing had happened.

Except the silence was dragging on too long. Ellen’s head shot up, taking in the three figures lurking in her doorway and her face broke into a wide grin.

Dean Winchester stood in her doorway, grinning cockily, sporting a mischievous grin and his green eyes were radiating trouble. Behind him, Cas stood, his eyes sweeping steadily over the room. But it was the much shorter girl standing beside Cas that drew Ellen's attention. 

Her daughter looked stronger than she had eight months ago, her blonde hair longer and hanging in thick waves around her face. Her hazel eyes, the exact shade of her own, were locked onto Ellen and her pink lips were spread in an enormous smile.

The three would have been beautiful as individuals. Together they were just as much intimidating as they were striking and the patrons of Ellen's bar seemed to realize it.

“Holy shit,” Someone breathed from one of the barstools to her left, voice ringing awkwardly in the near-silent bar. “It's the Winchesters.”

Ellen almost laughed. In the past six months, news of Jo and her "brothers'" exploits had spread through the hunting community like wildfire and the rumours were not far behind. Jo and Cas had both opted to start going by Dean's last name to put an end to any questions that could arise concerning their relationship. 

While she knew her daughter had stayed mostly out of the hunting action, their supernatural abilities had allowed Cas and Dean to dispatch other deadly creatures much more easily than other Hunters and it had elevated them to a sort of legendary status in the community.

Dean broke the silence by chuckling and moving towards the bar. Ellen noticed that all three moved as one, with the grace of predators, Jo and Cas staying one step behind their Alpha, acknowledging his leadership.

Ellen stepped from behind the bar and met her daughter, pulling her to her tightly and breathing in her familiar scent.

"Hi, Mom."

~~~

While Jo talked a blue streak, telling her all about everything she had missed over the past months, Ellen slipped back behind the bar to continue serving drinks. 

She slid two beers across to Cas and Dean, who hopped up onto bar stools and turned to watch the crowd. The inexplicable silence which their entrance had blanketed over the bar had lifted as soon as the other Hunters had seen that Ellen knew the three strangers but Ellen noticed that they were occasionally sneaking glances at Dean and Cas as they continued their various conversations.

After a while, a particularly angry Hunter Ellen didn't like much named Gordon Walker strode over to the two men. She froze and tapped the bar to get Jo's attention, nodding over to the scene unfolding. Gordon crossed his arms over his chest, glowering at them.

"You know, you two have created quite the name for yourselves the last little while. Personally, I don't think you have any more balls on ya than your pretty little sister over there. Man, I wouldn't mind bending her over and..."

Dean was moving before Ellen even really registered what was happening, crossing the distance between himself and Gordon in a few short strides, slamming the man against the pillar that jutted out from the bar with an arm across his throat, fist clenched in the material of his shirt.

Ellen’s eyes flew to Cas, hoping the calmer man might call him off before he did anything stupid. Instead, the young man met her eyes with a fierce burn and a clenched jaw. Despite herself, Ellen was perversely glad that the boys were so overly protective of her daughter.

With his face dangerously close to Gordon's, Dean’s voice was more of a growl than anything else. “Wanna find out just what happens if you talk about my sister like that? I’d be happy to show you.”

Gordon’s dark eyes narrowed, and he twisted his body, swinging his arm around. Ellen saw the metallic gleam of the knife headed towards Dean’s throat in the same moment that the Hunter swung his arm up to block the advance. The silver knife just barely nicked the flesh of his forearm, a miracle in itself given the speed of the blow. Dean didn’t react at all, but Ellen sucked in a sharp breathe when she caught sight of the wound sizzling.

If she had seen it, every other Hunter in the bar had seen it as well and they all knew what that meant. There were only a few kinds of creatures that would have that kind of reaction to silver — skinwalkers, shapeshifters and werewolves making up the main three — and none of them were on the friend list for Hunters.

It was like a chain reaction rippling through the bar as the other Hunters realized what had just happened. All of them snapped to attention but only a handle of guns and knives were produced, most of the Hunters seemingly hesitant to attack friends of the owner. 

Ellen could feel her hands trembling by her sides. This was bad. She pulled Jo under the bar and yanked her to her side, her brain failing to register that her werewolf daughter could probably defend herself better than she could.

Cas, who had yet to move during the ordeal, rolled his eyes and sighed, swinging around on his stool to face the room. His eyes were burning with that same anger she had seen before, skipping from Hunter to Hunter as he assessed them all individually.

Brain finally kicking into gear, Ellen reached blindly for her gun, feeling the fear bleed out of her muscles as the sound of it being racked shot through the bar. Cas twisted to look at her curiously over one shoulder, and his mouth split into a grin as he saw her levelling the gun at the Hunter closest to him.

The man, whom Ellen didn't recognize, broke the silence. “What are you?”

“Werewolves,” Cas admitted, taking a long swallow of his beer.

“Right,” the man sneered. “And what the hell are werewolves doing in a goddamn Hunter bar?”

“We’re also Hunters.” Dean’s voice chimed in. A quick glance revealed that he’d managed to get the knife out of Gordon's hand and it was currently impaled in the wooden pillar; the Hunter was still being supported there by an arm across his throat, but Dean had lost the dangerous intensity that he’d had only moments before, apparently amused by the shift in conversation. “And like you said, this is a Hunter bar.”

“Bullshit.” One of Gordon's friends announced, standing just a few feet away from where his friend was pinned. He hadn’t tried to pull Dean off, which Ellen was currently counting her blessings for, but his hands were curled into fists by his sides and he looked more than a little pissed off. “You’re no better than any of the other things that we hunt. Hell, we should just kill you now.”

Cas rolled his eyes again, sliding off his stool and straightening up. A few of the Hunters with their weapons trained on Dean shifted their attention to Cas, but most of them seemed to believe that Dean was the bigger threat.

Cas steadily made his way across the room with those fire-filled eyes focused on Gordon's friend.

He moved like an animal, calculated movements and soundless feet, and Ellen’s mouth dried up. She really didn't want anyone to die in her bar tonight.

She expected him to stop a few feet short of the other Hunter, or perhaps to lunge for him, but he did neither. Instead, he sidled up to the older man slowly, pressing in close.

“That hurts my feelings,” Cas said quietly. His voice held a hypnotic note that made Ellen shiver and she thanked her lucky stars that these boys were on her side. “You wouldn’t really kill me, would you?”

Slowly, unbelievably, the man shook his head and Cas smiled wickedly.

"Now, you're going to leave and take your idiot friend over there with you. And the two of you will not be giving Ellen or her daughter any more trouble." Cas reached out and adjusted the collar of the man's jacket, smoothing down the lapels and slapping the man on the shoulders.

Dean released Gordon with one last shove and backed off towards the bar, sneering at the man as he picked himself up, grabbing his friend and booking it out the door.

Ellen lowered her shotgun but kept it in her hands, addressing the rest of the bar.

"The Winchesters are my guests and my guests are not to be harmed. If any of you have a problem with that, you can hit the road, otherwise, next round's on the house."

She watched as a few Hunters picked themselves up and shuffled from the bar, throwing her dirty looks, but most of her patrons remained, looking decidedly agitated but not appearing to present an immediate danger to her daughter or the boys.

She poured three shots of whiskey and plunked two down in front of Cas and Dean as they settled themselves back at the bar. Jo reached for the third but Ellen snatched it and downed it quickly. 

Jo snickered and turned to Dean, a smirk playing across her pretty features. "If I didn't know any better, De, I'd say you were just a tad over protective of little ol' me."

Dean growled at her as Cas fussed over his injured arm, which was still steaming slightly from the contact with Gordon's blade.

Ellen passed him a shot of grain alcohol and he smiled his thanks before pouring it over his Alpha's arm.

The smoking stopped instantly and Ellen watched in amazement as the wound immediately knitted itself back together, leaving no trace of the small cut.

Dean caught her watching and winked at her, grinning as he downed his shot.

~~~

Jo helped her mother tidy up the bar after closing, feeling happier than she had in months to have her mom's comforting scent all around her once again. 

She glanced over to where Cas and Dean were playing a game of pool and felt a jolt of sadness shoot through her. She knew her pack would be leaving in a day or two to keep hunting and she would stay with her mom. She didn't want them to go but she knew that they had had a taste of hunting and they wouldn't stop now. Plus, both of them had been on the road almost their entire lives and it seemed to make them antsy to stay in one place for too long.

She sighed and scrubbed at the tabletop she was cleaning. It wasn't perfect but Dean had promised that they would swing by the Roadhouse as often as they could to see her and she had to be content with that. As nice as it had been the last eight months getting to know her pack, she hadn't felt at home with them, at least not in the way they seemed to feel with each other. 

Jo smiled as she watched her mom sort glasses behind the bar. She was glad to be home and actually couldn't wait to get back to school and her friends at Stanford. She would miss her packmates but she knew that this was where she belonged.

~~~

"You be good Joanna-Beth," Dean pulled the small girl into his arms, giving her a bruising hug. "I don't want to hear that you've been getting into trouble."

Jo rolled her eyes at him and turned to Cas, pulling the smaller man into her arms. His face was all scrunched up in way that Jo knew meant that he was close to tears. She kissed him on the cheek and stepped back.

"Swing back through soon, ok? I don't know what I'm going to do without you bossing me around Dean." She chuckled and punched her Alpha in the arm.

"Well you always have me Joanna. So no worries there," Ellen said, giving both Cas and Dean a hug before ushering them towards the Impala. "Now off with you two troublemakers. And don't be strangers."

Waving goodbye, Dean slid into the car with Cas and, grinning at him, started the engine and took off down the highway.


	3. Heat

~~~ One month later ~~~

Dean was sitting on the bed in the motel room, tying his shoes and trying not to disturb Cas, who was still sound asleep. The man hadn't slept well the night before, tossing and turning and mumbling nonsensical things in his sleep so Dean was trying to let him sleep as long as possible before they went out to get some breakfast.

He turned around as he heard Cas moan and shift, his eyes fluttering open. They looked bloodshot and his pupils were abnormally large. Dean frowned at his haggard appearance.

"You alright, Angel? You don't look so good."

Cas nodded, looking slightly dazed and sat up, blinking to try to clear the sleep from his mind.

"Take a shower, I'll bring back some breakfast for us." Dean patted his leg through the blankets before striding to the door, giving his Omega one last worried glance before he left.

Cas shook his head; the fog of sleep seemed reluctant to leave him this morning. He pulled himself out of bed and trudged to the bathroom, leaning over the sink to stare at himself in the mirror. His eyes were shot through with red and his skin was pink and sweaty.

Twenty minutes later, when Dean came back with breakfast, Cas was still standing under the shower jets, staring at the wall. He shook himself at Dean's call and stepped out, wrapping a towel around his waist. His lack of sleep seemed to have affected him more severely than he had thought.

~~~

"Well that was a giant waste of time," Dean commented as they left the house of the witness they had been interviewing.

The man honestly believed that neighbour had been killed by a vengeful alien spirit and had been less than useless in determining whether or not the man's strange death by blender had been supernatural or not.

Cas barely heard the comment. His heart was pounding in his ears and his skin felt far too thick. He wanted nothing more to get back to the motel and strip the uncomfortable heavy suit off. As he settled himself in the Impala, he noticed Dean staring at him and realized he had been asked a question. "Sorry, what?"

Dean frowned. "You've been off all day. Are you sure you're alright Cas?"

He shrugged, loosening his tie and pressed his too hot forehead to the cool window of the car.

The Alpha didn't push the issue but Cas could smell the waves of worry rolling off of Dean.

He pushed through their door as soon as the Impala stopped, stumbling up the path to the door. He was both freezing and far too hot at the same time. He couldn't understand what was wrong with him, why he felt a clawing emptiness, a yearning for something he didn't possess. 

Something clicked suddenly and he neared fell over his own feet in shock.

He remained frozen for a breathe before bolting for the motel. If what he thought was happening was in fact happening, he needed to put distance between himself and Dean, and fast. 

He stumbled into the bathroom, closed the door behind himself and locked it before turning on the tap and splashing cold water on his face. He stripped off his clothes until he stood only in his underwear. 

Tentatively, he felt the back of his boxers, closing his eyes and dropping to the floor as his suspicions were confirmed. He was in early estrus.

Dean followed Cas into the motel, seriously concerned about his strange behaviour. After changing into sweats and a t-shirt, Cas still hadn't emerged from the bathroom, so Dean walked over and banged on the door.

"Castiel, you're really starting to freak me out. Open the door and tell me what's wrong, man."

He heard Cas thunk his head against the door. "I can't open the door, Dean. Can we just...talk... like this for a minute? I need to explain some shit to you."

Dean frowned but leaned against the bathroom door and crossed his arms, waiting for him to speak.

"I'm an Omega, Dean. I...well, that m-means certain things that I haven't exactly explained to you." Dean heard a sigh before he continued. 

"Wolves mate for life, Dean. Alphas mate with Omegas and Betas with Betas, that's the way it is. Once a year or so, according to the research I've done on Omegas, we go into estrus. Basically it's a biologically driven state in which an Omega goes into a sort of fever. Thing is, an Omega will only go into estrus if they're in the presence of their mate during their cycle because once it starts, if the Omega isn't mated, they'll die."

Dean sucked in a breath at Cas's words, anxiety sweeping over him. The two of them hadn't been in prolonged company with anyone but each other for weeks. If Cas was in estrus, that meant that he was his mate. He heard a sob from behind the closed door.

"I'm so sorry, Dean. I-I didn't know this would happen. If I had I would have...left? I dunno."

Dean turned and grasped the door handle, the metal bending slightly under his grip. "Cas, you need to open the door. Right now, Angel."

He heard a slight shuffling and then the door cracked open.

The brunette was dressed only in his boxers and was covered in a sheen of sweat, his chest glistening and his hair damp and mussed from running his hands through it in frustration.

That's when the smell hit him. Oh, it was perfect. Sweet and tangy and salty, it smelled just like Cas but deeper: downright sinful. His erection was tenting the front of his boxers and Dean felt something like a needy growl start at the back of his throat. He stopped it, forcing himself to take a breath in through his mouth as his dick twitched in interest at the wanton sight of the Omega.

"I'm going to be too far gone to do much pretty soon. You know you're an Alpha. My Alpha. Means your knot is the only thing that's going to help me pretty soon. You should go get something to eat before it's too late."

Cas pushed the bathroom door shut again as Dean nodded and backed out of the room, breathing heavily as soon as the cold air of night hit him. He was shaking and trying to resist the urge to run back to Cas and claim him.

Fuck.

Dean pressed his knuckles to his temples. He was so out of depth here. Not only had he never been with another man, this was Cas! The guy was his best friend, his favourite person....and he was also his mate. The word rang through his brain clear as a bell and Dean felt his wolf clawing his insides, screaming at him to fucking tear down the motel wall that was separating him from his mate.

Dean bolted to the Impala, shoved himself in and took off for the nearest diner, intent on at least getting himself and Cas some food before he got too bad.

~~~

The first thing Dean saw when he returned to the motel was the lamp on the bedside table. It was lit dimly, the light shining through the shade enough to illuminate the room just slightly. Dean took a long while to stare at the object before his gaze landed on the bed.

Cas was in the middle of it. Totally naked with his legs spread wide, knees in the air, feet flat on the sheets. His chest was heaving and he was breathing heavily, which was probably due to the fact that he had three of his own fingers buried in his ass, pushing in and out of his hole.

His eyes were screwed shut, his bottom lip caught between his teeth. He had one hand on his cock, hard and leaking onto his fingers, pumping up and down, wrist twisting. If Dean didn’t know any better, he would have assumed that Cas was a fucking veteran at this kind of thing. But, he knew this was his first cycle, so he figured he was just a quick learner.

Fuck, that was hot.

Dean hadn't been noticed yet, Cas was too far gone.

“Need any help?”

He kept his voice low and quiet, trying not to frighten his Omega, as he set the takeout bag on the table. The way he felt his stomach lurch and his skin tighten when Cas's eyes blinked open, when his head snapped towards Dean, were all very big indications that he really had no choice here.

“Dean,” he breathed, and he didn't even stop fucking himself with his fingers, thrusting up into his hand. “Dean, please, need you.”

The words went straight to Dean’s cock, already hard as it twitched, almost painfully, in his pants. He quickly whipped his t-shirt and sweats off, throwing them into the darkened corner of the room. He crawled onto the bed and Cas sat up against the headboard expectantly, holding the hand that was not in use out to Dean.

Dean fit his temple against the outstretched palm, moving forwards until he knelt in between his Omega's spread legs. He brought his own hands to Cas's waist, fitting a thumb on either side of his ribs, and settled in the dip between his bones. He leaned down to put his lips less than an inch away from Cas's, whose eyes were wide, lust blown with only a hint of blue visible.

Dean was close enough to hear the tiny hitch in the Omega's breath, the way it caught in his chest and made his body jerk. Dean smirked and leaned a little closer, brushing his lips lightly over the corner of Cas's mouth. His skin was like a furnace, burning hot, but he assumed that was just a side affect of his heat.

“Want a — a knot. Dean. Yours.”

Dean growled, low in his chest. “Really, Angel?” Dean crooned, using his hold on Cas to slide him down, so that he was laying on his back with his legs still spread wide. Dean sat on his knees in between, hands moving up and down his sides in a soothing motion. “You that desperate for a cock? Want me to fuck you and fill you up, baby boy?”

“Yes!” Cas whined, loud and unabashed. “Please, Dean, wanted you so much, kept thinking about my fingers like — like they were you. Haven’t been able to get off on my own, I need you, please.”

Dean lost it then, surging forwards to kiss him. He used tongue and teeth from the start, biting at his bottom lip and sucking on his tongue. He positioned Cas so that he was lying properly beneath him, slotting their hips together, feeling him cock leak onto Dean’s boxers and having his hips stutter because of it.

“God, I want you so much,” Dean admitted, kissing a trail down Cas's neck, nipping the skin along the way. He hummed, dropping his mouth to his chest, breathing over a nipple. It hardened under the attention, pink nub perking up, and making Dean smile. He looked down to Cas's hands, still furiously working on himself, and he batted them both away. Cas whined, but complied, letting Dean pin his arms to the sheets on either side of him.

“You need me to get you off, right?” Dean asked, and Cas nodded, barely breathing. Dean smiled and kissed him. “Good, cause I can do that. You just gotta let me do it my way, ok? You gotta do exactly what I say and let me help you through this.”

Cas bit his lip but nodded. Dean slowly lets go of his wrists and Cas kept them where they were, flat against the bed. Dean wondered, absently, if there was anything he could use in the room to tie him down, but then realized he didn't have the patience to go searching for it, anyhow.

Dean leant down to Cas's chest once again and breathed in. God, he smelt fucking amazing; all sweet and strong and heavy. Dean wanted to bury himself in his skin, wanted to make it his home where he could settle and stay and feel happy for the rest of his life.

Any girl he had ever been with before paled in comparison to Cas. His Angel, with his desperate squirming and writhing. Castiel, with his wide eyes and parted lips. Cas, his Omega with whom it felt so unbelievably right to be with.

The Alpha part of Dean, the prominent, biological side to his nature that was being ripped forth from him by Cas in his Omega glory, was telling him that Cas needed this. It was telling him that Cas needed Dean to fuck him and claim him and take him. It was telling him that he would never hurt him, he couldn’t hurt him, because it was impossible to hurt your mate.

Mate.

Dean heard the word echo through his head again, ringing through to his Alpha who rose to the surface, recognizing the squirming Omega as his.

“Dean,” Cas whined, squirming with his arms having moved to underneath the pillow. His hips wriggled and his body arched, and he was glaring down at Dean like he was the worst person in the universe. “Dean, you said you’d touch me, please, touch me. I need you.”

There was something very base about those last three words. Something that hit Dean at his Alpha core, causing it to go into a frenzy. That was why his response was to bite down on Cas's nipple so hard he yelped, that was why he caught it between his teeth and flicked his tongue against it, brutally, making Cas cry out and buck up.

“You asked for it, Angel,” Dean said, affection for his Omega evident in his voice. He sucked a hickey on Cas's collarbone, inhaling his overwhelming scent and tasting his skin, a mix of soap and sweat and something so gorgeous Dean was addicted to it instantaneously. He pulled off and put his hands on Cas's thighs, pulling them open and commanding, “Spread ‘em.”

The Omega opened his legs as wide as he could, watching with enraptured eyes as Dean slid down his body. Dean kissed his way down his chest, pausing at the juts of his hipbones to suck a bruise on each side, blood rushing to the surface under Dean’s tongue and making him smile.

Marking was possession, and Cas was his. He knew this as well as he knew his own fucking name, and he was fucking high as a kite on the knowledge, drunk on everything that was Castiel Novak.

“What are you going to...to do?” Cas stuttered, Dean in between his legs, his thighs resting on Dean’s shoulders. He licked his lips when Dean looked up at him, a smirk playing around his mouth. Cas swallowed and tensed his jaw. “I can take anything you want to give me. I promise.”

Dean chuckled, pressing a kiss to the inside of Cas's thigh. “I know you can, Angel,” Dean murmured, kissing over and over again, unable to stop himself. “I know you’re gonna be a good boy for me.” 

Cas preened, smiling at his Alpha's compliment, and Dean felt pride that this beautiful omega was his. “But this is about what you want, Cas. You want me to fuck you? Make you come on my cock like a good little bitch?”

Cas seemed to choke on nothing, nodding and grabbing at Dean’s shoulders. He also appeared to have lost the ability to talk, so Dean just snuffed a laugh into his thigh, shuffled down and grabbed a pillow to shove under his tilted hips.

With a better view for Dean’s convenience, he was able to see just how fucking perfect Cas really was as he shucked off his boxers, finally freeing his straining cock.

He was wet, really fucking wet, his hole leaking with his natural Omega slick so damn prettily. Dean couldn't stop himself from leaning in, licking the rim and tasting him, shoving two fingers in beside his tongue. Cas might have fucked himself with his fingers, earlier, but he was still almost virgin tight, and Dean couldn't wait another damn second to slide his cock into that crushing warmth.

He came back up to put him face to face with Cas's mouth, kissing him softly while he pulled his fingers out of his ass. He put his hands on his thighs and got him to wrap his legs around his waist, using the slick from his hole to lube his dick.

“Please, fuck me,” Cas whispered, head thrashing on the pillow, hands still trapped. Dean took pity on him and took his hands out from their containment, placing them on his back, between his shoulder blades, letting him touch. It was totally worth it when Cas blinked, smiled, and breathed, “Thank you.”

Dean groaned and dropped his head to Cas's shoulders, biting down lightly, not enough to mark properly; not yet he heard his wolf whisper.

“Gonna fuck you so good, baby boy,” Dean promised, kissing Cas's cheek, his jaw, his neck. “Gonna fuck you with my knot and make you come all over yourself. Sound good?”

“Yes, Dean,” Cas replied, arching up as Dean took himself in hand, lining the head of his dick up with his leaking hole. “Please, Dean, please.”

Dean loved hearing Cas beg, loved having him obey unquestioningly. 

Cas was definitely a virgin in this and this was his first heat, and Dean wanted to take it slow, wanted to make sure he was alright with everything and he could take it, but the Alpha in Dean could only think fuckbreedmate and it was difficult for him to do anything other than push in, slowly, inch by inch.

Cas let out this noise like he was in heaven, like feeling the head of Dean’s cock push past his rim and stretch him open was the best fucking thing in the world. He clawed at Dean’s back with blunt nails, raking red marks into the skin that Dean would have for days, would treat like a reminder, a prize.

In all honesty, they should probably have used a condom, because as an Omega, and in heat, Cas was susceptible to pregnancy, this much Dean knew from the piles of literature Cas had forced on him over the past year. Despite knowing this, all Dean could think, when he imagined his Omega all fucked with his come, bearing his kid with a swollen belly, was, would it be that bad?

He shook the thoughts away, blaming them on the heat of the moment, and buried himself fully in Cas.

“Fuck,” Dean breathed, feeling Cas clench around him, so tight and so fucking perfect. “Shit, baby boy, you’re so fucking gorgeous, so fucking amazing.” 

Cas whimpered and tightened his legs around Dean’s waist, silently begging for more. Dean smirked and kissed him sloppily. “Knew you’d be a slut, Angel. Knew you’d go fucking crazy for my cock, so desperate."

Cas nodded, body seizing up as Dean pulled out of him, far enough that his head caught around the rim, only to slam back in. He made another noise, caught between pain and pleasure, and Dean hoped the edge was good, wanted to make this pleasurable for him.

“Nothing better than you, Dean,” Cas admitted, clinging onto Dean’s shoulder, tilting his hips so that Dean could drive in deeper. Dean was pointedly avoiding his prostate, for now — he wanted to make him scream when he wanted, and he'd get there eventually. “No one...no one else could make me feel like this.”

Dean grunted, driving in hard, kissing Cas with teeth and tongue and intent. “Damn right, Angel. I’m the only one who can make you feel this good, the only one you’re ever gonna need. You don’t want anyone else, do you? You don’t want any other Alpha, no other knot, you just want me.”

Cas's eyes were screwed shut, trickles of sweat trailing down his temple that Dean licked away. The smell was overwhelming now, sinking into Dean’s pores and making his thrusts frantic, his fingers on his hips grip so tight, there would definitely be bruises.

Usually he could control himself during sex, but he was finding that here, with Cas, he just fucking couldn't.

“Only you, Dean,” Cas whispered, eyelashes fluttering against his high cheekbones, lips kissed red and swollen. “Only ever want you, Dean, please.”

Hearing Cas promise all these things, hearing him submit to Dean’s hands and his lips and his possession, Dean wasn't sure he could last much longer. His hips were already stuttering, his lips mouthing at the man's jaw insistently, and he could feel what he assumed to be his knot starting to swell, starting to tug on Cas's rim with every thrust.

Dean had never come inside a girl before, not without protection. It was too intimate. But he wanted to with Cas, so, so much. He couldn't imagine pulling out, couldn't imagine coming anywhere but in his Omega's pretty little hole.

“Open your eyes, Angel,” Dean coaxed, and Cas's eyes sprung open. Dean smiled and rewarded him with a kiss. “Good boy. Wanna see you looking all pretty when you come on my knot.”

Cas's head got stuck between a nod and a thrash, hitting back against the pillows when a moan ripped past his lips. Dean looked down and saw how fucking far gone he was, already, how much he was getting off on the feeling of Dean’s semi-swollen knot dragging along the outer rim of his hole. He decided to make it even better for him.

He gripped his hands tighter on his hips, tilting them upwards, just slightly, and slammed in, hard.

Cas let out a choked off moan, body going lax and eyes so fucking wide they could pop out of his skull. Dean smiled to himself, kissed his pliant mouth, and started jarring the head of his cock against Cas's prostate on every thrust.

“Dean,” he whimpered, whined, moaned like it was a fucking prayer. His hands scrambled for purchase on Dean’s sweat slicked back, his hips tilted and his cock rock hard and leaking against his toned stomach. “Dean, please, oh, right there, gonna come, can’t...can’t hold it back anymore.”

Dean smirked, fucking into Cas so hard, the bed crashed against the wall behind. “Yeah, c’mon, baby, come for me, be a good little bitch and come on my cock.”

Cas whimpered and didn't touch his cock, like a good boy, and came all over his stomach, just because his Alpha told him to.

Dean hung on, fucking into Cas and hitting his prostate while he covered himself in streaks of white. He came for so long, his wide eyes staring at Dean, like he was lost and overwhelmed. Dean felt like a God, making Cas feel so fucking good it actually confused him, and that’s what tipped him over the edge.

He felt his knot swell even further and he pushed forward with one more hard thrust. Cas moaned as the knot popped past his rim and Dean came, his vision whiting out as he filled his Omega up with his cum. 

The Omega squirmed happily, ass wriggling and clenching, milking his Alpha's cock. Dean blew once, twice, his knot amazing him with how much cum he is able to fill his Omega up with, and he dropped his head to Cas's shoulder, inhaling sex and sweat and heat. It was softer now, less desperate, but it was still so damn sweet, and Dean loved it.

He kept his head down for fuck knows how long, breathing in slow and deep. He knew there was no point trying to pull out, he could feel that his swollen knot was far too big and trying would just catch on Cas's rim and be painful for both of them, so he stayed where he was. He never wanted to hurt Cas, would never do anything except protect him. After a while, he decided it was time to resurface.

He lifted his head, looking straight into Cas's wide blue eyes, and the wolf took over from inside him.

He growled possessively and placed both hands on either side of Cas's face, tilting his head and exposing his neck.

Dean felt his teeth shift, elongating into canine fangs as he nuzzled the soft skin of Cas's neck. He heard a moan distantly and tilt his head back further, baring himself to his Alpha, who growled and sank his teeth into his Omega's skin.

Cas yelped and his cock jerked, spurting another rope of cum onto his chest as Dean's teeth tore into his flesh. Blood burst from the wound and Dean growled again, holding his mate in his grasp in the most intimate way possible.

He came back to himself a moment later, his teeth still buried in Cas's neck. He winced, extracting his fangs and staring at the wound he had created. The blood had stopped flowing almost instantly, Cas's healing ability kicking in, and Dean could see the open wounds already stitching together. When it was healed, unlike the flawless expanse that Cas's skin had been, there was now a clear scar in the shape of a crescent, a bite Mark clear as day.

Dean blinked at the Mark, confused as to how he had managed to scar the man but also perversely pleased that he had Marked his Omega as his own. He glanced at Cas and saw that he was already fast asleep, a blissed out expression plastered across his face.

He lay his head on Cas's chest and listened to his heartbeat, his own slowing to mirror the rhythm of his mate's.

Mate.

There was the word again. Dean looked up at Cas again and repeated it to himself, feeling the truth of it course through every fibre of his being. The gorgeous man spread out under him was his: he was his best friend, his lover, his Omega and his mate.

Dean closed his eyes and fell asleep on Cas's chest, his wolf purring happily at the knowledge.


	4. Family Three

~~~ Three years later ~~~

The club was packed and hazy, jazz music playing into the red lit room and the occasional clink of glasses sounding through the air. People were clustered together around tables, groups sitting close together in the booths, and a handful of well dressed patrons sat primly at the bar. Behind the mahogany wood of the counter, a single bartender bustled backward and forth, navigating the customers and mixing drinks with a practiced ease.

Castiel was perched at the bar as well, nursing a vodka tonic and surveyed the people closest to him. This club was a cut above any he and Dean normally frequented and he enjoyed the change of pace. He took a long sip from his glass as his eyes located his Alpha surreptitiously, tucked away in a corner booth with a small group of elegant women.

Cas rolled his eyes as the group laughed loudly at something Dean said and tuned himself off of his mate's presence. He downed the rest of his drink before he gracefully got up and began to weave his way across the room towards the restroom, effortlessly stepping out of the way of patrons as he went.

Halfway there, he was stopped by a hand on his arm.

It was clammy and cold, despite the hazy heat of the club, and big enough that fingers touched thumb as it closed around his wrist. Cas tuned his attention to the owner, breathing in deep as he registered an odd edge to the stranger’s scent — something sharp and tangy. It reminded him oddly of maple syrup, sweet and too strong, and his eyes flew around to take in the clean-shaven face of a handsome stranger.

“Can I buy you a drink?” He asked with a grin, voice husky and low. There was an invitation there, and Cas felt his grin widen a little as the guy’s hand slipped up his arm to his shoulder, squeezing lightly.

“Vodka tonic.” Cas nodded, flashing a quick grin. The guy shifted past him, letting his hand drop to settle at Cas's lower back as he steered him back toward the bar. 

Unbeknownst to him, Dean was watching unrepentantly, green eyes catching the dim light of the bar and reflecting it back, making them look eerily bright and piercing. The stranger didn’t seem to notice the attention. “My name’s Cas.”

“Jason." The man grinned, slipping onto a bar stool next to him. “So what brings you to town, Cas?”

He shrugged his shoulders, nonchalant, tilting his head and fluttering his eyelashes coyly. He shifted slightly in his seat, pressing his side more firmly against Jason's. The strange scent hit him again, leaving him feeling almost nauseous — his limbs felt loose and relaxed, and it made Cas's spine stiffen a little in warning. “Business. Only here for a couple of days.”

“Now that,” Jason grinned, leaning forward until Cas could feel the man’s breath fanning across his own lips. “Is a damn shame.”

Cas's tongue darted out to wet his lips on instinct alone, and his blue eyes observed the sharp breath that the other man sucked in, eyes focused on the small movement. 

Dean had made the astute observation many months ago that he was a tease, and Cas played that to his full advantage, slowly and deliberately bringing his new drink to his lips and flicking his tongue out as he took a long sip.

Sure that he had the stranger’s attention, he grinned slow and deliberate. His hand stretched out, rested lightly on top of Jason's, and he knocked their knees together. “Just means that I’ll have to make the most of what little time I have...”

“Fuck,” Jason breathed, looking almost surprised as the word spilled from his lips. He nodded eagerly, nearly knocking his own drink off the bar as he slipped from his seat, eyes quickly locating the red velvet curtain that led to the exit. He tugged Cas towards the door by his hand, and he felt a familiar curl of excitement in the pit of his stomach.

Jason's body posture seemed to shift as they walked — no longer nervous or anxious, but collected and very much in control, hand tightening around Cas's. 

For his part, Cas felt a thrum of energy through his veins — the same feeling that washed over him with every shift, a familiar adrenaline that came coupled with the urge to chase and hunt and fight.

He brushed through the curtain and stepped lightly through the back door, allowing Jason to lead him further into the darkness of the narrow alleyway behind the bar. They skirted around a shed, and just a few feet from the door, Jason tugged him into the shadows and crowded him up against the wall.

The man’s body pressed against his in a long line of heat, hands reaching down for the buckle of his belt even as he tilted his head up towards Cas's neck. Before he could make contact, he was jerked backwards by the collar of his jacket, and Cas grinned into the darkness as the familiar scent of his mate washed over him.

Jason whirled around, eyes suddenly glowing a superhuman blue, and was greeted with the sight of a very pissed off Dean Winchester. His face darkened, the edges of his mouth curling up into a snarl and eyes narrowed.

“What the hell is going on here?” Jason asked, wisely choosing not to advance on the extremely angry man. It seemed that he’d finally clued into the fact that there was something amiss here — that he’d been tricked, and had unknowingly headed blindly for the exact place that Cas was trying to herd him towards.

“You do realize that you were only supposed to lead him into the alley, don’t you?” Dean asked instead of arguing, eyes locked on Cas rather than the now cornered Incubus. “Not actually let him fuck you against the wall like a simpering little schoolboy.”

“Why don’t we concentrate on killing him for the moment, Dean?” Cas asked. The Incubus darted his gaze back and forth between the two, panic crossing his features briefly as he realized that he was outnumbered. There was no chance of him getting away, and he knew it.

His eyes flew again to Cas, and then darted across to Dean. “You’re not even human, are you? What do you want with me?”

Cas shrugged. “To see you dead? It’s really not that hard to figure out.”

“Am I on your territory or something? I can skip town — I know how territorial you shifters get.”

Dean growled, low in his throat. “Werewolves, actually. As for this being our territory…no. But we don’t appreciate you hunting and killing humans. It isn't nice. You’ve met other hunters, surely? Things like you are the reason that we even exist.”

The Incubus’ eyes narrowed. “So what, you’ve switched teams? Working for the hunters like little pet dogs? How very domestic.”

Cas growled at the insinuation, and Dean moved before the Incubus even saw it coming — hand shifting even as he swung it towards the creature’s throat, growing claws sharp enough to tear through skin and muscle. For a long moment, the Incubus remained standing, face frozen into an expression of shock, and then his knees gave out from underneath him and he fell to the ground with a thud.

Cas sighed. “That was anticlimactic. I was hoping for some action.”

“If you want action, Angel,” Dean growled, crossing the distance between them slowly, backing Cas towards the wall. “Just say the word.”

“I can think of better things to do,” he replied breathily, surging forwards to kiss his mate. Dean’s hands came up instinctively, one tangling in his hair and the other gripping his hip, holding him still as he angled his head to explore deeper into the other man’s mouth.

Cas pulled back a bit, breathing heavily, "We should probably deal with him before someone comes back here." He breathed into Dean's mouth, indicating the dead Incubus with a slight nod.

Dean groaned but nodded his head even as he tilted his head slightly to nip sharply on his neck, tongue trailing his bite Mark there. Cas shivered at the sensation, and pushed his mate back reluctantly.

Dean made a grumbling, feral noise deep in his throat as he pulled away, shooting a dark glare at the Incubus before reaching down to grab the his arms, tossing Cas his keys, as his Omega bent down to grab the creature’s feet.

In less than half an hour, they had salted and burned the body of the Incubus in a deserted field outside of town and were watching the fire consume the creature's body.

Dean looked over to Cas and grinned wickedly, pressing a hand on his mate's back and nudging him towards the car. Cas smiled, he didn’t need to be told twice.

~~~

The car ride back to the motel room was made in silence.

There was an almost tangible tension buzzing underneath the surface, and every subtle shift of Cas's hips had Dean’s hands tightening around the steering wheel until his knuckles were white. The smaller man was clearly well aware of what he was doing, eyes glittering darkly with every streetlight that they passed, and a feral grin tugging at the edge of his mouth.

It wasn’t until the motel finally appeared in sight that his long fingers slid their way over the bench seat to lightly squeeze his mate's thigh. Dean swore loudly, clumsily parking the Impala in the bay outside of their room with a loud screech of breaks.

At any other moment, he might have taken the time to straighten her up, make sure that she was neatly tucked between the lines in order to avoid some vindictive asshole damaging her… and avoid Dean committing murder, as would likely be the result of that particular situation. As it was, it was all he could do to remember to lock her as he fumbled in his pocket for the door key.

Cas pressed up close behind him, fingers slipping under his shirt and trailing patterns over the smooth skin of his hip.

Finally, the door swung open and the two of them fell through. Dean tossed the key in the general direction of the table without paying even a little attention as to where it landed, and had whirled on his mate before Cas even finished closing the door, pinning his Omega against it with his own body.

Cas shuddered, hands reaching up to tangle in his Alpha's hair as their mouths met in a vicious kiss. Dean’s nails bit into his hips, threatening to break the skin and draw blood, and Cas ground them up with a bitten-off whimper as Dean pulled away, turning his attention to his mate's neck.

“Not so quick, Angel,” he growled out, sharply biting down on the junction where neck met shoulder when Cas bucked his hips once more. “I’m gonna make you beg for it.”

Cas's head tipped back, banging off the door with a hollow thud as Dean’s hands slowly slipped down his shirt, tugging lightly on the end before bringing it up and over the other man’s head in a smooth movement.

Cas's hands reached out to return the favor, but Dean batted them away, stepping back a few feet and slowly removing his own shirt. Cas seemed to get with the program as the other Hunter reached for the buckle on his belt, quickly shedding himself of his own shoes and jeans.

“On the bed,” Dean panted, lightly shoving him towards the object in question. Cas scowled, resisting for a long moment before he allowed himself to be tipped backwards.

“Not some little bitch,” he sniped, propping himself up on his elbows to glare at his Alpha. Dean wasn't perturbed in the slightest, slowly climbing onto the bed and crawling over him, letting his body weight pin the man to the mattress.

When he spoke, his voice was a deep rumble in his chest that Cas felt as much as heard. “Sure you are. You’re my little bitch.”

Cas wanted to deny it. He wanted to flip their positions and pin his Alpha to the mattress, show him that just because he was an Omega, it didn’t mean that he was some weak little thing that needed to be taken care of. Unfortunately for his pride, Dean chose that moment to deliberately align their crotches and grind down, and all thoughts of protest fled from Cas's brain in that very instant.

“Jesus,” He groaned, back arching as his mate ground down again, rubbing their cocks together through the thin material of their boxers and providing just enough friction to have arousal shooting through every inch of Cas's being. “Fuck, Dean. Just get on with it already.”

He shifted as best he could with Dean's weight on him, shimmying his hips a little in order to slip his boxers free. They got as far as his knees before Dean rolled his eyes and reached behind him to tug them off with one hand, slipping his other hand down to give Cas's cock a few hard tugs. 

His back arched, pressing closer to his Alpha as he gasped harshly; in the dim, fluorescent light peeking through the gap in the motel room curtains, Dean’s wicked smile stood out vividly from the darkness around him.

His hand slipped lower yet, until Cas felt the tip of his finger press where he wanted it most. Whimpering deep in his throat, he bucked his hips, forcing the finger deep inside of him. Dean groaned low in his throat, gently removing the finger and replacing it, working the other man over so slowly that it felt like some kind of torture.

Beads of sweat glistened on Cas's skin, cock hard and flushed and curving deliciously up towards his toned abs. He was whining low in his throat, an animalistic noise that only encouraged Dean to add another finger, to work them deeper and harder, ruthlessly rubbing against his mate's prostate.

“Please, Dean,” Cas gasped eventually, hips bucking up to meet the slow glide of Dean’s fingers even as he pressed his head back into the pillow and started up at the other hunter with beseeching eyes. “Come on, fuck me already.”

Dean grinned, pausing to lick Cas's slick off his fingers before shimmying out of his own boxers. His dick slapped against his toned stomach, leaving a trail of precome, and he closed his hand over himself for the first time, closing his eyes and giving Cas a very deliberate show.

He made a small, desperate noise, panting as he watched his Alpha stroke himself.

“Dean,” He gasped again, reaching out to wrap his hand around the his wrist, tugging him closer. “Please. I need you.”

The other man allowed himself to be tugged forwards, until Cas felt entirely surrounded by him — his warm, spicy scent and the familiar feel of his warm skin; hot breath on his neck, and the press of a hand on his stomach.

He didn’t bother to line himself up, just tipped his head to nip and kiss at his neck, rutting blindly until his cock finally hit Cas's entrance, and then he pushed. Cas cried out, body arching so sharply that it looked almost painful, muscles quivering at the intense sensation of being stuffed so full.

Dean would never stop loving this. The dark, possessive part of him loved how much Cas wanted this — how he needed to get fucked deep and hard the same way he needed oxygen or water. The way his body seemed to fit so perfectly underneath Dean’s, narrow hips settled against Dean’s own, rubbing together as he ground down hard.

His dick sunk impossibly deeper, and Cas panted harshly as his hips bucked at the sensation; his muscles were fluttering around his mate's hard length, and just when he thought he might adjust to the sensation, Dean reared back and fucked down roughly.

Cas cried out, wrapping his legs around his Alpha's waist as the other man set a brutal pace, his own cock leaking against his stomach as Dean’s length hit his prostate dead on, time after time.

He shifted his legs, changing the angle of his hips, and Dean’s next thrust had him crying out once more. His eyes rolled back into his head, cock jerking once before spilling across his stomach. Dean didn’t slow, didn’t so much as hesitate as he bit hard against the other man’s neck, gripping the skin there as he picked up the pace even more. Cas's muscles were contracting almost violently around his cock, leaving them both trembling, and he could feel the sticky sensation of Cas's come smeared between their stomachs.

All too soon, Dean felt resistance on his cock with each thrust. Dimly, his sex-riddled brain registered the swelling of his knot and began to fuck down even harder, rolling his hips with each short, firm thrust to drag his knot against Cas's rim.

“Knot me, oh fuck, want it, need it, Alpha,” Cas begged, clawing at Dean's shoulders. He cried out in pain and pleasure as he felt it fully enter him and he came again with a shout.

Hearing Cas call him that had Dean coming just seconds after, biting clean through his lower lip as he shot his release deep inside of his mate.

He fucked himself through it, hips rutting shakily until the pleasure decreased. Only then did his muscles give out and he collapsed on top of his Omega, his cock still pulsing jet after jet of cum deep inside of him.

Cas's lungs were heaving unsteadily, skin sticky with sweat and cum, but when he turned tired eyes down towards his mate, he was grinning widely.

Dean sat up, gently pulling Cas's left leg up and over and rotating his hips slightly in a practiced movement until he was laying on his side. 

Knowing he had at least a half hour until his knot had deflated enough to pull out, he lay down behind Cas and pulled the other man in tight, spooning up behind him so close that he could feel his rapid heartbeat beating next to his own. He reached blindly for the covers, gently tucking them around the two of them, and nuzzled his head into the back of Cas's.

“Hmm,” Cas said sleepily, sliding his arm next to Dean’s and tangling their fingers together. “That was amazing. Love you, Dean."

Dean pressed a kiss to the soft skin at the nape of his mate's neck.

“Yeah,” He agreed, as he felt his eyes begin to slip shut. “Love you too, Angel. So much.”

~~~

"I think we should go see Ellen and Jo," Cas said the next morning as he folded his clothes into his duffel.

Dean raised an eyebrow at his mate. "We were just at the Roadhouse three months ago. You wanna go back already?"

Cas shrugged and sat down on the bed, lacing up his shoes. "I know, but I miss Jo. And Ellen. And three months ago we were there for a case, we barely saw them. The argument could be made that we haven't actually hung out with Jo in over six months Dean."

He looked up at his Alpha, eyes pleading in a way that made Dean think there was more to this. "We're done with the case here and I just have this feeling that the pack needs to be together right now. Can we go? Please? For me?"

Dean groaned exaggeratedly before he grinned and nodded at his Omega, earning himself a hundred watt smile.

~~~

Jo puttered around behind the bar, four bottles of vodka gripped in one arm and a full bucket of ice in the other. She was attempting to restock the empty bottles and get the bar ready before they opened in an hour. She glanced up from her task to find Adam watching her with an amazed expression on his face from his seat at the end of the bar. Chuckling as she tipped the ice easily into the basin, she flipped the bottles into the air and caught all four easily behind her back.

"No matter how many times I see you do shit like that, it never ceases to amaze me," he shook his head and grinned at her.

Jo flashed her boyfriend a smile, pushing her sweaty bangs off her forehead as movement from the door caught her eye.

Dean barely had time to take a glance around the empty bar before a blonde blur slammed into him, squealing happily.

He recovered quickly and wrapped his Beta in a hug, spinning her around before setting her down. As soon as her sneaker-clad feet touched ground, Jo turned to Cas, leaping onto the shorter man's back and wrapping her arms around his neck. She dropped a kiss onto his cheek from where she hung on him and giggled.

"Nice to see you too, Jo," Cas chuckled, gripping her legs and hoisting her up into a proper piggyback before walking her off towards the bar.

Dean followed, eyes on the young man at the end of the bar. The guy had sandy blonde hair, cut short, and brown eyes. He was leaning against the bar, sipping casually from a beer bottle, as he watched the interaction but his eyes and scent betrayed his anxiety.

From his phone conversations with his Beta, Dean knew this to be Adam Milligan, Jo's boyfriend and whether it was the Alpha inside him wanting to protect his pack, or his basic instincts as a pseudo brother, Dean could feel his protective urges humming to life.

Jo obviously felt or smelt the change in Dean's scent and she twisted around from her perch on Cas's back to investigate. Following her Alpha's line of sight, she winced and slid down, striding quickly over to the man, where she grabbed his hand and pulled him off his stool.

Cas rolled his eyes as he saw Dean adopt his typical intimidation stance. Regardless of his protective instincts, he didn't want his mate scaring Jo's boyfriend. From the way Jo talked about the man, she was extremely smitten and Cas didn't want Dean and his possessive bullshit to ruin that for her.

He rested a hand on his mate's arm, squeezing gently and Dean glared at him, narrowing his eyes but relaxing his body posture as Jo and Adam approached.

"Dean, Cas, this is my boyfriend Adam Milligan," Jo introduced, her eyes flashing at Dean with a silent warning.

Cas smiled warmly at the obviously nervous young man and extended a hand, "Castiel Winchester, nice to meet you, and don't pay attention to him," he said, indicating his mate with a nod, "He's just in a bad mood."

Dean growled low in his throat, making Adam swallow nervously, and Cas shot him another warning glance as he led Adam over to a booth to sit.

He and Dean settled on one side with Jo and Adam on the other. Dean stared with narrowed eyes when Jo laced her fingers through Adams, deliberately placing their twined hands on the table and raising her eyebrows in a clear challenge to her Alpha.

Dean looked surprised at his Beta's defiance but he huffed a breath of air through his nose and crossed his arms, leaning back into the black leather seat, looking decidedly perturbed.

Cas chuckled at his mate's antics and turned to Adam, "So what can you tell us about yourself, Adam?"

They sat and listened as Adam caught them up with his life story. He was a fourth year student at Stanford, like Jo, and he lived with his mother near the campus. He had been raised only by her since his father had run out when he was a baby and he had no siblings. When he told the two of his part-time gig at a local garage, Dean's eyes flashed with interest that he quickly suppressed but not before both Jo and Cas saw. They both knew how much their Alpha loved cars, and Adam's shared interest would make it harder for him to hate the man.

As Adam finished up, Jo looked to her pack. "Guys, I'm actually really glad you swung by. I kinda need to talk to you..." She looked at Adam sheepishly and continued. "Adam knows what we are."

Cas's eyebrows rose in shock as Dean sucked in a sharp breath and jumped up, his eyes flashing dangerously, exposing to the girl the angry wolf inside him.

"What?! What the fuck did you do Joanna-Beth!?" Before his anger could get out of control, Cas grabbed his wrist and yanked him back down, stroking his thumb over Dean's pulse, using his Omega influence to relax his mate.

Immediately, the tension flooded from Dean's body, relaxing into Cas's touch, but his eyes retained the dangerous fire.

Cas turned back to Jo, who had leaned defensively over Adam at Dean's outburst. "Explain Joanna."

She sighed and leaned back, "I think Adam is my mate."

Cas blinked in surprise but leaned over to touch her hand, keeping his other hand on Dean, keeping him calm. He was concerned and he let his worries bleed through the touch. He knew that there was no biological way to determine a Beta's mate, it was all to do with emotions and feelings, which could easily be misinterpreted.

"Why do you think so, Jo?" He asked gently.

Jo bit her lip and lifted her's and Adam's entwined hands, placing the flats of their palms together with their fingers still linked. She then yanked the sleeve of her long sleeved shirt up with her teeth and presented her left wrist. Her Mark was glowing a soft red colour, pulsing along with her heart beat.

Cas felt his eyes widen and felt Dean stiffen beside him. "My god," he breathed, ghosting his fingertips over the glowing Mark before he met Jo's eyes. "It does that every time you touch?"

She shook her head and pulled her sleeve back down. "Only started after we..." she blushed furiously and looked down. "It wouldn't stop for about a week but it seems I can control when I want to make it happen now. Have you ever read of anything like this before?"

Cas shook his head, raising his eyes to Dean as a thought occurred to him. He twisted in the booth and grabbed Dean's left hand in his, twining their fingers together. Ignoring his mate's questioning look, he furrowed his brow and concentrated. A second later, he felt a warm burn spread from his heart and he looked down to see his and Dean's Mark pulsing with the same red glow Jo had demonstrated.

He looked in amazement at his mate, who was blinking at him with an equally astonished expression on his face. Dean grinned at him and reached over to trace a calloused fingertip over the mating Mark on Cas's neck.

Jo and Adam were watching their interaction carefully as Cas and Dean snapped out of the trance, tuning back in but maintaining their firm grasp on each other.

"So I guess that's pretty decisive isn't it." Dean stated, breaking the silence and addressing his Beta. "What do you wanna do?"

Jo turned to Adam. "I want to turn him. I can do it." She looked to her pack, a plea evident in her voice. "It's been almost four years since we found each other, right? Well I haven't changed in the slightest, not physically, and as far as I can tell you two haven't either. We're almost twenty seven and none of us look a day over twenty three."

Cas pursed his lips. In all honesty he had noticed that none of them seemed to be aging any longer but he hadn't wanted to bring it up, fearful of the implications of such a thing. Being a werewolf was one thing, but being immortal was a whole other consideration.

Dean turned to Adam and addressed him for the first time since he had entered the bar. 

"You know what this means? You better be damn sure that you love her because you have no idea what you are getting yourself into. We aren't human." Dean let his wolf flash in his eyes and let his canines elongate, snarling at Adam before letting his features return to normal. "This ain't no regular commitment, you'll be tied together for life...forever if our suspicions about our mortality are right. You'd be giving up your life."

Adam set his jaw and leaned towards the larger man, a steely look of determination in his eyes. "Jo is my life. I would die for her in second so if giving up my minuscule human existence is what it takes in order to be with her forever, I would do it over and over. So you can threaten me, warn me, try to scare me off, but I'm not going anywhere."

He leaned back, crossing his arms without looking away from Dean's heated gaze. Cas bit his lip to keep from laughing aloud at the expression on his mate's face. 

An Alpha by nature and the Alpha in their pack, Dean wasn't used to people questioning or challenging him on things like this; he was used to people rolling under his will. Cas wanted to congratulate Adam but he didn't dare with Dean in his current state so he just squeezed his mate's hand gently to calm him. Dean glanced at him quickly out of the corner of his eye before chuffing and nodding once.

Jo's face lit up instantly and she had to visibly restrain herself from leaping across the table to hug her Alpha. Cas turned to her, "Do you want us here with you when you do it? To help? None of us know how it'll go for a human to be turned so it probably wouldn't hurt."

Jo shook her head. "No I think I'd like you guys to stick around in case I need you but I think this is something that needs to be done just the two of us." She smiled at Adam lovingly before standing up from the booth. "For now, I need to finish my prep so Mom and I can open. You guys are welcome to stay if you want but I'm so behind." She leaned over and gave Dean a peck on the cheek and a quick hug. "Thank you so much. You know what this means to me."

Cas smiled as she scampered off to the back room, Adam following close behind her like they were joined at the hip. He nudged his mate. "Hungry, Dean. We should get some food. We can always swing by later."

Dean still looked lost in thought, his eyes trained on the spot his Beta had vanished into the back, but he nodded absentmindedly and stood up from the booth.

They had barely reached the car, Cas just reaching to open the passenger side door of the Impala when Dean pushed him up against the car. 

He wrapped his hands in his jacket and slotted his thigh between his legs, pinning his smaller mate against the sleek body of the car. He nosed his way up into the hollow between Cas's neck and shoulder, nipping sharply at the taut skin and grinning as he felt his breath hitch in his chest. He loved that he could make his Omega immediately pliant under his touch, the right bites and kisses in the right places turning him into a whimpering mess.

Ever since he had seen the softly glowing light providing visible evidence of their bond, he had wanted to cover his mate in his scent, rub himself all over his Angel and claim him as his own all over again.

As he attacked Cas's neck, drawing half-pained moans from his mate, he smelled a slight undertone to Cas's aroused scent that he hadn't noticed before. It was warm and heady, comforting and relaxing and it made Dean's wolf growl happily. He leaned back and covered Cas's mouth with his, licking the seam of his lips before he was granted entrance.

After a few moments of shameless rutting and kissing, Dean pulled back, pulling a distressed moan from Cas at the loss of contact. Flashing his mate a cocky smirk, Dean strode around the car and slipped behind the wheel, adjusting his straining cock in his jeans as he did.

~~~

A few days later, Jo called, informing the boys that she had successfully turned Adam into a Beta wolf like herself. While he lacked the Greek letter proclaiming his status, his scent and mannerisms seemed proof enough. She told them that she was taking him away for a few months, as they had done for her, so he could adjust to himself and learn to control his new abilities. First, though, Jo reminded them, she needed Dean to come and claim him as part of the pack. A wolf without a pack could be a dangerous creature, volatile and rabid without an Alpha's control to reign in his wilder side.

Cas and Dean met them behind the Roadhouse after dark had fallen heavily around the bar. 

Adam was blinking rapidly in the darkness and he appeared extremely on edge, jumping at the slightest movement and glancing around like he was afraid something was about to attack him. Dean instantly felt his wolf bristle at the scent of the new wolf, growling with the mixed desire to attack and claim.

Jo and Adam were already stripped of their clothes so Cas and Dean caught up quickly. As the others looked to him to lead, Dean shifted first, shaking his golden brown fur and standing up to his full, impressive height. 

Cas shifted next, curling his smaller form around his Alpha and nuzzling him lovingly. Dean glanced to Cas quickly, chuffing at his mate. Jo had clearly already explained to Adam how to shift into his wolf form because when Dean looked back up, two wolves were staring back at him. Adam's wolf form was the exact opposite of Jo's: while she was white with a black stripe down her muzzle, Adam was black with a white stripe.

Cas and Jo backed off from the other two, leaving Dean to confront the new wolf alone. He barred his teeth and growled at the other wolf, daring him not to submit. Adam looked confused and surprised and Dean bristled at the slight, but it was only for a moment before the smaller wolf dropped to his belly and put his muzzle to the ground.

Dean leapt across the short distance, pinning Adam to the ground with his body and leaning over to grip his scruff in his teeth. He bit down firmly, the sharp tang of Adam's blood filling his mouth as he staked his claim over the Beta.

He held tight to the other wolf for a moment, letting his authority flow over the new wolf, before he pulled off and trotted over to Cas. He nuzzled his mate before taking off into the woods with him, leaving Jo to spend time with her own mate as she saw fit.

~~~

Dean woke early the next morning, sunlight spilling into the room across the bed. He groaned and rolled over to cuddle up to Cas but found himself alone in the bed. Frowning, he blinked the sleep from his eyes and glanced around for his mate. The bathroom door was closed and he could hear the sink running. He stood and knocked on the door, concerned.

"Angel? You okay?"

He heard a groan from somewhere near the floor and he reached for the doorknob, fear spiking through his chest. The door was unlocked and he stepped into the bathroom to find Cas sprawled on the floor, his head leaning on the toilet seat and his arms wrapped around the back of his neck.

Dean grabbed a bottle of water for Cas before crouched beside his mate, rubbing his back in a manner he hoped was comforting.

"Angel?"

Cas kept his head buried in his arms and sobbed slightly.

"Baby, talk to me. I can't help if I don't know what's wrong," Dean placed a soft kiss to his Omega's shoulder, trying to offer the same comfort in his touch that Cas's touch provided him.

Cas spun and wrapped his long arms around Dean's neck, clinging to him tightly as he shook with quiet sobs.

"Shh, shh, it'll be okay, baby boy. I'm here." Dean clung to his mate, fear thudding heavily through him as his overactive imagination considered all the possible reasons for the Omega's strange behaviour.

"So s...sorry Dean. Didn't know. Didn't f'gre out 'til now." Cas sobbed into his neck, hot tears falling onto his skin.

Dean pulled back and took Cas's face in his hands, allowing the Alpha to creep into his eyes and his tone, "Castiel, tell me what is wrong."

Cas shivered, distress marring his features, but he managed to choke out, "I think I'm pregnant."

Dean sat down heavily on the floor, releasing Cas as the fear instantly bled out of system, replaced by a blanket of shock.

He blinked at his mate, who was watching him from worry and distress filled eyes. "But your last heat was like, five months ago?"

Cas smiled bitterly and winced, "Doesn't have to be during a heat, Dean. Technically, I can get pregnant at any time."

Dean shook his head slowly, the initial shock slowly dissipating, replaced with a growing sense of joy. He felt a grin slowly spread across his face as he stared at Cas, his perfect mate, and howled in happiness.

Cas's eyes widened at the surprising noise before slanting in confusion. "You're happy? I thought you would be upset."

Dean leapt up, pulling Cas with him and out into the main room. He sat him down on the bed and knelt in front of him, between his knees and took his face in hand again.

"How could I be upset about this?! God, Angel, I love you so much. You are so perfect and now you're giving me a baby?" He laughed and kissed Cas hard. "No baby, I'm thrilled."

Cas looked stunned for a moment before his face split into an enormous smile, eyes filling with happy tears. "Really? Are you sure? I just assumed that you wouldn't want this..."

Dean growled and dropped his hands to Cas's still flat stomach, looking up at him in silent question. Cas nodded and he placed his hands on his belly, his mate's belly which would soon be swollen with his baby.

He chuffed happily and leaned forward onto Cas, who laughed but allowed himself to be pushed down and back onto the pillows as Dean lay his head down onto his stomach, curling around the Omega's side as he trailed lazy symbols onto the skin on his belly.

~~~ Eight months later ~~~

Dean leaned on the doorframe and watched Cas fold baby clothes into the dresser, using his swollen belly as a shelf. He loved seeing his mate like this, he looked gorgeous and happy, his Omega nature being fulfilled in the best sense. The darker, more possessive part of Dean also loved seeing him with his baby inside him, displaying him as Dean's for all the world to see.

Not that Cas had been able to get out much in the last few months, since being obviously pregnant and male was not exactly the most normal thing for most people to accept. Instead, Cas had devoted his time in captivity to making their new house as perfect as possible. 

Once they had found the little two story house in Palo Alto, just a few miles from Jo and Adam's apartment and only a short drive to the Roadhouse, he had spent days pouring over his laptop, ordering furniture and decorations for the house.

He had done amazingly well, finding the best deals to squeeze the most out of Dean's military pension. They had pretty much drained Cas's significant savings account when they bought the house but luckily, with the pension as well as Dean's salary from the local garage, they had made it work.

Finally, after many months, the house was to Cas's liking and the only thing left to do was to wait for the baby to come.

Over the last eight months, Cas had done as much research as he could until he found a kind, elderly retired doctor named Louis Preysing who happened to be a Wicken, and who apparently was not shocked at seeing a pregnant man. Months earlier, he had explained to them what the process would be like. He wanted to use a general anesthetic on Cas before performing a C-section, which, he explained, would definitely be the safest and easiest way for the baby.

Cas had started to protest, wanting to insist on delivering his baby naturally. He knew his body was designed to do it and didn't want his baby affected by any weird drugs. However, a warning look and a squeeze of Dean's hand had him nodding his reluctant acceptance.

~~~

On an unseasonably cold and miserable afternoon in January, Cas was preparing himself a snack when he was suddenly paralyzed with agonizing pangs in his stomach. He dropped to the floor, terrified and unable to move due to the pain.

He reached up onto the counter for his phone, jabbing blindly at the speed dial to call Dean.

"De...I need you. I think it's time..." was all he managed to pant out before he heard Dean swear and disconnect the call.

Considering the garage was a couple miles away, Dean got home in record time, screeching into the driveway and bolting into the house, his eyes wild and feral with fear.

He found Cas sitting on the kitchen floor, eyes scrunched closed in pain and breathing heavily through his mouth. Dean picked up his mate easily, despite the additional weight, and carried him to the Impala, gently settling him inside before bolting back to the house.

He hurriedly packed some necessities for Cas before diving into the car and driving like a man possessed over to their doctor's house, placing a hurried call to the man on the way.

Louis greeting them at the door, hustling them quickly into the back room, which used to be a study but now doubled as an operating room.

Dean placed Cas gently on the operating table, before Louis ushered him out of the room into the living room. For an hour, Dean paced anxiously, praying to whatever God that existed that they would watch over his Angel.

Finally, just when he didn't think he could handle it anymore, Dean heard the hearty wail of a newborn baby. Dropping to his knees, he released a pent up breath that he didn't even realize he had been holding.

Louis shuffled out of the back room, wiping his hands with a towel and wordlessly smiled, motioning for Dean to follow him.

Dean awkwardly approached the room, seeing Cas propped up in pillows, holding a tiny bundle of dark brown hair wrapped in a blanket. “Come meet your daughter, De,” Cas said, smiling widely.

Dean felt like this legs had turned to lead as he nervously walked towards the bed, stopping and standing over Cas. He gazed down at the tiny, wrinkled face of his baby girl and was at loss for words before he finally spoke.

“Oh, Angel… she’s just perfect. C- Can I hold her?” He managed.

“Of course, come here, sit down,” Cas said, patting the bed with his free hand.

Dean slowly sat down on the bed, holding his arms out and Cas slowly, almost reluctantly, handed Dean their baby.

He carefully cradled her in with one arm, and with his left hand, he gently traced her features, smiling.

The tiny creature slowly opened her eyes, revealing emerald green pools of light. Dean gasped as his daughter, just like that, claimed his heart forever.

“Wow.” He mumbled to himself, amazed at the strength of the emotion.

“What’s wrong?” Cas asked.

“Nothing’s wrong, it’s just… she’s just so incredible. She’s so beautiful, Angel. I just can’t believe she’s ours. What are we gonna call her?” Dean whispered.

“I like Leah,” Cas answered. "Leah Marie.”

“Leah Marie,” Dean repeated. “It’s beautiful. It suits you, gorgeous,” Dean whispered to his daughter, kissing her on the forehead.

“We have to take you home, little one,” Dean whispered. Cas was already drifting off, and he felt awful having to wake him up, but he didn’t want to overstay their welcome.

He eventually helped Cas into the car, before carefully strapping Leah in the pink carrier he’d brought for her. He paid the doctor a hefty amount and thanked him excessively before departing.

After driving home so slowly and carefully he was even rolling his eyes at himself, Dean carried Leah in her car seat inside the house before returning to carry an exhausted Cas in as well. As he was gently easing him into the bed they shared, Leah woke from her slumber, wailing suddenly after noticing she was left alone.

Cas jerked awake instantly, sitting up and looking panicked. “Where is she, where’s Leah?” He tried to stumble out of the bed to look for her, but winced as the healing wound in his stomach pulled painfully.

Dean was at his aide instantly, easing him back into bed. “Angel, it’s all right, it’s all right. She’s in her car seat. She's fine. Here, want to hold her while I get her bottle ready?” Cas nodded, still worried for his baby’s safety.

Dean unbuckled the tiny person from her car seat, wrapping her in the fuzzy pink blanket he bought for her months back. She was still crying, so Dean held her close, pressing his daughter to his heart right where she belonged.

“Hey, sweetheart it’s all right, it’s all gonna be all right. Daddy’s gonna get you a bottle, would you like that, sweetie?” Dean murmured to the baby, attempting to soothe her. He was speaking in an unnaturally high pitched voice and it amused Cas to no end, easing some of the panic he had felt at her cry.

Dean handed Cas Leah, and he gratefully pulled her into his arms while Dean went around to getting a bottle prepared.

By the time Dean got back to the two, Cas was looking panicked again.

“Dean, she won’t stop crying,” he sputtered nervously.

“No it’s all right, Angel, she’s just hungry.” Dean assured him, handing him the bottle. "You'll see."

Cas offered it to her, and she hungrily clutched the nipple while her pretty green eyes lit up as she looked up at her dad.

Dean wound his arm around Cas's waist, smiling. “See? She was just hungry.” He couldn’t stop smiling while looking at his little girl, his finger clenched tightly in her tiny hand.

“Dean… can you believe she’s ours, that we created her? She’s so beautiful and perfect,” Cas said, his words trailing off. He pressed his forehead to his baby’s and pulling her even closer to him.

“I know, it’s amazing. You're amazing Angel,” Dean murmured and kissed Cas's cheek.

“You’re pretty amazing yourself,” Cas said, turning to tenderly return the kiss to Dean’s lips.  
Dean could feel the parting of his mate's lips as he smiled through the kiss. Dean twirled locks of Cas's hair, letting his fingers trace his face, neck, then trail down his chest. Gently caressing his mate.

Cas sat back up to adjust Leah, who had finished her bottle and was squirming out of her blanket. After burping her, he rocked her in his arms until she started to doze off so he bundled her back up and leaned against the headboard.

“She doesn’t need to sleep in her crib tonight, does she? I just don’t want to leave her alone.” Cas said, looking down at the sleeping infant.

Dean shook his head. “It’s fine, she can stay with us. There’s no safer place in the world for her.”

Cas smiled and gently placed her between them, still staring in awe at the beautiful little creature they created. He closed his eyes and began to doze instantly, while Dean stayed awake, feeling the protective Alpha need to watch over them both.

The exhaustion of the day was wearing on him though, and he could feel himself start to give in and fall asleep. He kept his eyes open for one more minute to check on his baby and his mate to make sure they were both okay.

He smiled widely and thought how amazingly perfect this was: him, Cas, and their child, together, always and forever. His thoughts trailed to Jo and Adam, the rest of his pack, and he smiled at the thought of his rambunctious Beta spoiling her new little niece rotten.

A distant memory of a song Dean had heard as a baby back came to mind, and he smiled to himself and began to sing softly.

“Hush little one, feel the warmth of my love. Angels will guard you from clouds up above. May all the blessings in the world, come settle down, on my little girl.” He kissed the top of his daughter's head once more and smiled. He couldn’t remember the rest of the song, but it seemed like enough so he simply settled back into the covers, closing his eyes.

“That was beautiful, De,” whispered Cas, startling Dean, who thought he was asleep.

“Go to sleep, sweetheart.”

“Mmm, love it when you call me sweetheart,” came Cas's reply and Dean could hear his smile.

“I love you Angel, love you, and Leah more than anything,” Dean said, thought to remind him in case Cas had forgotten.

“Love you too De, always.”

The End


End file.
